Contemporary Reception
THE CAT IN THE HAT was well received by critics, educators and parents but most of all by children! The initial reviews were all very positive, below is a sampling of what critics had to say upon publication in 1957.
Using a limited vocabulary but without sacrificing any of the rhythm, rhyme or imaginative nonsense characteristic of his work, Dr. Seuss has produced a diverting picture book story which can be read independently and thoroughly enjoyed by first and second graders…[The Cat in the Hat] is a welcome departure from the “Look! See!” fare which is the customary lot of children in the early stages learning to read.
Booklist May 1, 1957. p.459.
In this reader Theodore Geisel has accomplished a tour de force. With only 223 different words he has created a story in rhyme which presents an impelling incentive to read. Parents and teachers will bless Mr. Geisel for this amusing reader with its ridiculous and lively drawings, for their children are going to have the exciting experience of learning that they can read after all.
Helen Adams Masten
Saturday Review May 11, 1957. p.54.
[The Cat in the Hat is a] hilarious account of what happened the day it rained and the Cat in the Hat came visiting while mother was away ….The text is so simply written that beginning readers could handle it with ease, and it has all the spontaneous humor of Seuss nonsense at its best. Not only will the book bring welcome relief to beginning readers who are wearing of the stilted prose of their regular texts, but it will also be of use with older students even into high school, who are severely retarded readers.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
(Published by the University of Chicago),
September 1957. p. 19
Kids love the Cat!
It was the children who responded with the most enthusiasm! According to Seuss biographers, Judith and Neil Morgan: “The book escalated into a sensation: spurred by playground word-of-mouth, children nagged their parents to buy it.” Geisel himself felt it was the parents even more than educators who recognized the need for this kind of reader to get their children to read.