Yertle the Turtle was added to my TBR in desperation as I searched for a title beginning with Y for my Alphabet Soup reading challenge.
This is another post joining in Marvellous Middle Grade Mondays, run by Greg Pattridge at Always in the Middle. I usually post on the third Monday of the month.
You may find it hard to believe, but I had never before read anything by Dr, Seuss. He may be the mainstay of children’s stories in the US, but I was well past that age before his work crept into British bookshops and libraries, so all my knowledge of the Cat in that Hat, Horton and Whoville, have all come to me third hand, often through quiz questions! But…Yertle the Turtle came to my rescue when I most needed him.
Yertle the Turtle and other Stories
by Dr. Seuss
In this hilarious book, featuring three timeless fables, Dr. Seuss explores the pitfalls of growing too big for your boots! King Yertle the Turtle soon learns the pitfalls of becoming too big for your boots, in the first tale in this hilarious trio of classic Dr. Seuss fables!As part of a major rebrand programme, HarperCollins is relaunching Dr. Seuss’s bestselling books, including such perennial favourites as The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham and Fox in Socks. In response to consumer demand, the bright new cover designs incorporate much needed guidance on reading levels, with the standard paperbacks divided into three reading strands – Blue Back Books for parents to share with young children, Green Back Books for budding readers to tackle on their own, and Yellow Back Books for older, more fluent readers to enjoy. Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories belongs to the Yellow Back Books range. (Goodreads)
My Review
The ‘other stories’ are Gertrude McFuzz, and the Big Brag. I enjoyed Yertle most. He is such a pompous character, and everyone knows him, even from a very early age. And when Mack complains about his back, you know how it’s going to end…but…. How far can it go?
Several things about children’s stories occurred to me as a result. Firstly, the illustrations are marvellous and totally relatable to the story. But the illustrator isn’t credited, so I assume Dr Seuss did them himself. Brilliant!
Second was the rhyme, which had the same metre throughout the three stories. Is this a known thing about storytelling? Has it turned out to be the most easy way to tell stories in verse? Do other people do it differently?
And third, I skimmed through again looking for word length and complexity. Yes, all the longer words are common, everyday ones, like ‘butterflies’ or ‘ridiculous’. But is it more difficult to fit three-syllable words into the rhyme, or does it help to get longer words in every now and then. Or am I overthinking it because I’m working on my second young readers’ book?
So I learnt a lot from this book. But mainly, that it was great fun!
Thank you for your insight into a well-known Suess character in the USA! You make me think, as you shared new information for me about the re-release of Suess books for various ages and stages of young readers. Heading to the library to find Yertle. Glad these books mentor you.
A retired librarian and Nana to a 5-year-old
And lovely to meet you, Beth, and thanks for the follow. Looking forward to getting to know you like the other regulars!
I love Dr. Suess, but haven’t read this one. I’ll have to check it out at my library. Thanks!
Wow, hard to imagine coming on Dr. Seuss at our age! I grew up with him, of course. And yes, he did his own illustrations, at least in most of the books (I think a few of the beginning-reader ones were collaborations, but mostly the drawings were an important part of his vision. Possibly my favorite of the short pieces is “The Pale Green Pants” and as far as the long ones go, Bartholomew and the Ooblek (not sure about that spelling) might top my list.
We had a record (LP!) when I was a kid (or maybe it was a frequent borrow from the library?) with someone (no idea who) doing a reading of the “Sneetches” collection, which is where the pale green pants are. Loved that. And then there are the tongue-twisters in “Fox in Sox,” which was so much fun to read to our kids!
I always thought this was an interesting story because of its political message against fascism. It’s been a long time since I’ve read it. Thanks for sharing your review.
It’s been a long time since I read this one, but this was one of my sister’s favorites growing up. I really thought your analysis on the poetry was interesting. It was so long ago that I had to learn about meter for my degree, so I need to refresh. But I will definitely take a look at Seuss’ other books and see if he uses the same meter in those as well.
Your review brought back memories of being introduced to Dr. Seuss ant a young age. So many fun and engaging stories including this one. Thanks for featuring the “Y’ book on this week’s MMGM!
It’s been a very long time since I took a peek at this one, or any Dr. Suess. So, fun to read your thoughts on it. And now, I’m going to have to head to the library and read it again, too.
What a fun surprise to find this review. I haven’t read this book for decades. I think I need to revisit the Seuss books. Thanks for the post.
I remember my youngest sister reading The Cat in the Hat but I haven’t read any of Dr Seuss, you make it sound fun! Thanks for sharing!
I grew up with this book and think I’ve got a copy laying about somewhere… always loved the good doctor.