Review: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

The Lorax

Author: Dr. Seuss

Nearly forty years ago, when Random House first published Dr. Seuss's The Lorax, it sent forth a clarion call--to industry and consumers alike--to conserve the earth's precious and finite natural resources. The message of this whimsical yet powerful tale resonates today more profoundly than ever. In every corner of the world, we are at risk of losing real-life Brown Bar-ba-loots, Swomee-Swans, Humming-Fish, Truffula Trees, and the forests they all inhabit.

Review

When I first started reading The Lorax, I had no idea what to expect. I knew absolutely nothing about the book except for these few words: "I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees." One of my high school friends would say those words on occasion and loved the book, remembering it from her childhood. So I was always curious about it, but never actually read it until now. I bought it for my son for Valentine's Day. I'm planning on taking him to see the movie so I wanted us to both have a little insight into the story that is originally Dr. Suess'. What I found in reading The Lorax, was a book that inspires you to care for your environment. A book that teaches you that one small move, such as cutting down a tree, can lead to a countless number of unwanted and undesirable problems for habitats that one may not even be aware of. This story follows a boy who asks the Once-ler about what happened to the Lifted Lorax. How was his lifted, and why? The Once-ler tells the boy what happened, but only when given the correct payment. The Once-ler tells the boy about how he started his business of making Thneeds "which everyone, EVERYONE, EVERYONE needs!" The Once-ler chops down a tree, makes a Thneed, sells it to a chap, and begins "biggering" his business by cutting down more trees and making more Thneeds. In doing so, he drives out the Brown Bar-ba-loots who need the Truffula Fruits. The Once-lers business puffed Smogulous smoke into the air which sent the Swomee-Swans away because they could no longer breathe. The building dumped Gluppity-Glupp and Schloppity-Schlopp into the pond where the Humming Fish live, sending the fish away because their gills were so full of the goo they could no longer hum. But the Once-ler continued doing as he was until the last tree was cut down, and after this, his family left, leaving only him to live in the land that he destroyed.

The Lorax teaches us that we need to remember these tiny habitats and communities within the trees, the water, the air, and everything in between, that we should care for it all because if we don't, nothing will be able to survive. We must protect all living things; not just ourselves, but the animals and plants that also share this world with us. We must preserve all living creatures, for what we do affects everything around us.

I rate this book: 

Some interesting information: 

Dr. Seuss Enterprises and Random House sponsor a little thing called The Lorax Project. This project was designed to raise awareness about environmental issues and inspire earth-friendly action. If you would like to know more about this project, visit www.theloraxproject.com. 

And for those of you who have children and have yet to discover this wonderful website called Seussville, I suggest taking a look. My son just adores it. There are tons of interactive games that go along with the themes of some of Dr. Seuss' books, including the Lorax. You can learn about all of the characters, print out activity pages, make your own Who, earn Dooklas which you can use to "buy" items for your Who.. Lots of childish fun!