Dr. Seuss: Day 5

Today started with Horton Hatches the Egg. Mayzie is a lazy bird that's sitting on her egg waiting for it to hatch but she's bored and wants a break. She needs a vacation! Horton the elephant walks by and she asks him to sit on her egg while she takes a quick break--she won't even be missed. Horton agrees and Mayzie flies off. Horton strengthens the tree so he can sit in the nest and he sits there all day and night, through a terrible storm, hoping that Mayzie will be coming back soon. Meanwhile, Mayzie has flown to the beach and is enjoying her vacation so much, she decides that she's not going back. 

Horton continues to sit on the egg, even through the wind, snow and sleet because he's determined to keep his word. In spring, all his friends come around and laugh at him and then run off to play. Horton is lonely but keeps saying:

"I meant what I said
And I said what I meant...
An elephant's faithful 
One hundred per cent!"

Then hunters come and aim their rifles at him but he still won't run away so the hunters decide to sell him to the circus. They built a wagon and it was a long, miserable trip but they made it to New York and sold him. The circus travels all over and one day comes to the town where Mayzie is staying. She's surprised to see Horton, but before he can say anything to her, the egg starts to hatch. Now that the work's done, Mayzie wants it back. When the baby comes out, there is a pleasant surprise and Horton is able to return to the jungle, where he is 100% happy!

Another great Horton book that shows dedication and hard work will pay off in the end even if it takes a loooong time to see the results. When you're lazy and don't want to try, you also miss out on the reward (which is also obtained through the journey).

My Rating: 4 stars

I think my son's tongue still felt twisted from yesterday so he chose The Shape of Me and Other Stuff today. Reading is still a chore to him and since this was beyond what he has to normally read, he chose a small, easy book. When my children were younger, we would see if they could recognize the outlines of different shapes and had lots of fun with it. They're beyond that now but it's still a fun book to look at.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Last up this week: If I Ran the Circus. Morris McGurk is walking by the vacant lot behind Sneelock's Store and starts daydreaming about his plans for this piece of property. He would clean up the junk and put up The Circus McGurkus. He has big plans and introduces lots of fun animals and acts. I love how he includes Mr. Sneelock in them. He's sure he won't mind doing small odds and ends, such as sell balloons and pink lemonade, collect sizzling hot pebbles that fall off the moon, be lassoed by the tail of a Wily Walloo, stand still while the Blindfolded Bowman shoots an arrow through the crab apple on top of his head, twirl the baton in the parade, slide down a course of Stickle-Bush Trees on his Roller-Skate-Skis, tame the Spotted Atrocious (who is known to eat people), lie down on the Life-Risking-Track while the speedsters race around and jump their cars over him, wrestle a beast called the Grizzly-Ghastly, train the herd of "Through-Horns-Jumping-Deer," and ride the spouts between two whales. The finale is when he rides through the air pulled by three Soobrian Snipe on a contraption attached to his pipe and they take him up high where he shakes himself loose and dives down to earth from 4,692 feet where he lands in a fish bowl (this one really made me laugh).

Another fun book full of imagination and fun pictures. 

My Rating: 4 stars

I realized this week that there are lots of Dr. Seuss books I don't have. I thought I had The Sneetches since that is probably my favorite story but I don't so this is a collection I would love to build up.