Dr. Seuss

The Cat in the Hat is a book written by Dr. Seuss that walks a thin line between good sense and non sense. Children love the wild antics of The Cat in the Hat and love to make sense of the text that contains many sight words. A contemporary book that seems to have the same non sense / making sense mixture at The Cat in the Hat would be Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy Shaw. This book is about the crazy adventures of a group of sheep that take off in a jeep. It also has the same rhyming element at the cat in a hat.

The Cat in the Hat will always appeal to children because it makes the ordinary, extraordinary. Two children are stuck in their house, and then imagination and a little magic brings about the Cat in the Hat. The adventures will always appeal to children.

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The Lorax is a didactic book because it teaches a lesson while being entertaining. It is saddening to see the Truffula Trees cut down in this story because they are a non-renewable resource. This sounds very similar to issues in our own world. Children learn that luxuries come with a price. The story teaches that we should take minimally - just what we really need.

I think there are many great didactic books today. I use many of them in my classroom to teach certain lessons. The book I use include: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns to Listen, Mr. Peabody's Apples, and Chrysanthemum.