Yertle The Turtle and Other Stories by Dr Seuss
| Yertle The Turtle and Other Stories by Dr Seuss | |
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| Category: Emerging Readers | |
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Reviewer: Zoe Morris
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| Summary: Three classic Seuss stories in one, be prepared to be transported to some magical, mythical lands. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 88 | Date: September 2017 |
| Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-0008240035 | |
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The three stories in this book, Yertle the Turtle, Gertrude McFuzz and The Big Brag are classic Dr Seuss. They fit together well because they all have a moral or learning from them, be it treat those beneath you well, or don't try to compare yourself to others.
I thought the stories were a good length, and really leant themselves to reading out loud. My favourite was Yertel because you can see him getting carried away (or elevated to a higher position, perhaps) but with mutiny rising, it won't be for long. When Mack sends everything crashing to the ground through a burp… well! There were lots of cackles of laughter at that point. I think that's the appeal of Dr Seuss for the large part, putting simple every-day things in non every-day situations or with characters you might not imagine. In Gertrude McFuzz we have a bird with tail envy and an unusual solution, but we also find out what happens when you're greedy and go too far, providing a lesson in restraint for all of us.
The colour scheme in this book is limited throughout, with blue, green, black and white being the extent of it. The illustrations, though, and typical Dr Seuss. I recently re-read The Christopher Robin Collection by A A Milne and E H Shepard and the contrast could not be greater between the soft, playful characters there and the stern lines here.
Language is often quite similar between Dr Seuss stories, though I'm not surprised once you're found a rhyme for cousins you want to use it repeatedly. The usual rhyming approach applies, and all three stories had a lovely bounce too them that just beg to be shared and read together, even with youngsters who are perfectly capable of reading them themselves too. Having three shorter stories helps with this too.
The stories are truly timeless, because they are set in a different world with different concerns. There is no technology, dated or otherwise, in these books, just various creatures in nature, going about their business. To describe them in 3 words I would say fun, kooky and inventive, and I'd like to thank the publishers for sending us a copy to review. For another Dr Seuss classic with an important message, have a look at The Lorax.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Yertle The Turtle and Other Stories by Dr Seuss at Amazon.com.
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