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Summary: Horton, My Hero!
Review: "Horton Hears A Who!" has been my favorite Dr. Seuss book since early childhood, and I'm still amazed at how much I enjoyed reading it again at age 40! It's classic Seuss storytelling with outstanding illustrations that young children will love and boys and girls alike will instantly conect with the book's theme, "a person's a person, no matter how small." A wonderful classic no child's library should be without...what the heck, even adults can learn something from kindhearted Horton, buy a copy regardless of your age.
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Summary: Even one little voice can tip the scale
Review: A great book with a lot of positive lessons. Horton, an elephant, is the only animal who can hear sounds of life on a little speck of dust. Other animals think he is crazy and want to destroy the speck. But Horton sticks up for the inhabitants of the little village on the dust speck. He urges them to scream as loud as possible to prove their existence. There are a lot of lessons in the story. It teaches kindness and determination; it teaches to care about others, even if they are as small as creatures on a speck of dust. But for me, the most important lesson is that EVEN ONE LITTLE VOICE CAN TIP THE SCALE! Upon Horton's request, all the inhabitants on the dust speck start crying out as loud as they can. But Horton's friends still cannot hear their little voices. The inhabitants of the dust speck were all screaming together ... all but one. Only when that one little voice was added to the "chorus", animals were finally able to hear them crying out. And so is in our lives: each voice, each good deed, counts, and each good deed can finally tip the scale for good in the world. The book teaches that if you want the world to be a better place, as small as you may be (just one person out of millions?), YOUR "VOICE" COUNTS!!!
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Summary: A children's book that can be read on many levels...
Review: I bought this book for my six year-old this past Christmas. She has recently fallen in love with Dr. Seuss books, and poetry in general. And this book, along with other Seuss books, gives her great joy. We read it together, out loud, enjoying the scan and ryhme of the words and sentences. And on that level, it's one of her favorites. But after we read it, we talk about the concepts behind it, how "a person's a person, no matter how small", and how Horton realizes the inherent dignity in all life, regardless of whether or not it fits into our commonly held conceptions. This book allows me to open up discussions on race, and religion, and the external aspects of persons, and how often we judge people (sometimes unfairly) based on how they look, rather than on their actions. I highly recommend this book for any schoolchild and parent to read together, reveling in the language and fun, and then use as a stepping stone to further discussions about life and personhood.
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Summary: Horton the Elephant: A True Hero for Our Time
Review: I suspect that even people who don't know a word of English might enjoy Dr. Seuss's galloping rhythms, precise rhymes, and intricate illustrations of creatures and objects that couldn't possibly exist outside the wonderful, whimsical Seussian universe. But in Horton Hears a Who, the good doctor uses his inimitable talents not only to amuse but to weave a morality tale of surprising profundity. Although Horton is the largest creature in the Jungle of Nool, he alone is sensitive to the needs of the very smallest and most helpless. "A person's a person no matter how small" is a refrain that has rung true with several generations of young readers, and it is a credo that is no less valid today than it was half a century ago. Although Horton is referring to the tiny inhabitants of Whoville, young readers know intuitively that the author is really speaking about them. That children both need and deserve the respect and protection of their elders is a point that is all too rarely made in children's literature. Come to think of it, don't all of need to be reassured once in a while that compassionate spirits like Horton can be counted upon to come forward in times of crisis to protect us from the likes of the gleefully ignorant Wickersham Brothers and the mean-spirited Vlad Vlad-i-koff?
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Summary: "Big" enough for kids to understand!
Review: If you've never read this story, you and any children you read it to, are really in for a treat! This is one of those children's stories that introduce really huge concepts and really important things to think about - wrapped in a wonderful tale. It's a "big" story - an elephant with a big heart and his willingness to sacrifice for others. We learn that size of one's body doesn't matter - it's the size of one's heart that really counts.
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Summary: Two stories in one
Review: Like most of Dr. Seuss's work, Horton Hears A Who can be taken at face value or read as a deeper allegory. I would like to concentrate on the first, as I believe there has been enough philosophizing done on this book to last for years.
Horton is an elephant who happens to hear a tiny little voice (by merit of his large ears, one would suspect) on a flower. Amazingly, he discovers an entire tiny city lving on this one flower! Everyone else in the jungle of Nool is critical, and tries to dissuade him of this--first peacably enough, but later with more hostility. In the end, Horton and all his Who-friends are able to save the day with a lot of teamwork and one little voice added to the fray.
Of course, your child probably won't care about many of the underlying themes at age 4--if Dr. Seuss's books were only dry life lessons, they wouldn't be classics. Yet, at the risk of going against my earlier promise, there is more than a good story here, and that's what ultimately makes this book rereadable at any age.
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Summary: On the 15th of May, in the Jungle of Nool...
Review: My favorite Dr Seuss book as a child, and now a favorite of my kids. There are so many messages in this book, but they are never forced upon the reader. You are free to read it as a gentle story, a discussion of politics, a moral tale about the role of the individual in a community, or simply some of the catchiest poetry ever written. And who couldn't love Horton, hate Vlad, and cheer at the young kangaroo's last "me too"? The fabulous story deserves to be in the center of any family's children's collection...and should be in with the grown-up books too.
Rating:
Summary: On the 15th of May, in the Jungle of Nool...
Review: My favorite Dr Seuss book as a child, and now a favorite of my kids. There are so many messages in this book, but they are never forced upon the reader. You are free to read it as a gentle story, a discussion of politics, a moral tale about the role of the individual in a community, or simply some of the catchiest poetry ever written. And who couldn't love Horton, hate Vlad, and cheer at the young kangaroo's last "me too"? The fabulous story deserves to be in the center of any family's children's collection...and should be in with the grown-up books too.
Rating:
Summary: Perhaps his best one
Review: People are valuable no matter how small. No matter how powerless and no matter how little influence they have. A good message and written as a moving story that even little kids can follow along with even if they can't grasp the entirety of the message. I don't know if Dr. Suess meant this story to be a pro life message, but it certainly works for that cause. He makes a compelling arguement for one, in this case Horton, to fight against the odds and disfavor of the group for the cause of a single insignificant and unknown person. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Perhaps his best one
Review: People are valuable no matter how small. No matter how powerless and no matter how little influence they have. A good message and written as a moving story that even little kids can follow along with even if they can't grasp the entirety of the message. I don't know if Dr. Suess meant this story to be a pro life message, but it certainly works for that cause. He makes a compelling arguement for one, in this case Horton, to fight against the odds and disfavor of the group for the cause of a single insignificant and unknown person. I highly recommend this book.
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