Small Joys–Dr. Seuss
Yep, I know. Dr. Seuss is getting a bad rap right now. I did a little research on my own. (Better than believing everything you’re told!) And yes, I found some objectionable political cartoons in his past, done during WWII. Also some illustrations in his books that could have been more politically correct. As a writer, I’m just going to say this, not as an excuse for him, but just that he lived in a very different political climate than we do now. If we could look ahead 100 years, I suspect we’d be shocked to find how politically incorrect we are, although we’re trying with all our hearts to be the best we can.
I abhore book burnings. I abhore book bans. Now, not every book out there is going to find a cozy place on my bookshelf nor should it, but do I have the right to tell you what books you should have on your shelves? I know it’s a touchy subject. I detest books that tell kooks how to build bombs or explain why we should hate a whole segment of the human population. But what about books that simply disagree with my political or religious beliefs? Or with yours?
In 1933, students in Berlin burned more than 25,000 books that touted principals in disagreement with their Nazi politics. From 1920-1940, libraries in the Soviet Union lost almost ALL their books due to purges of objectionable material. This year, 2021, books are being destroyed in China because they are politically objectionable to the ruling political party, but before we start pointing fingers, we need to admit that the same thing is happening in this country. Like me, you’ve probably seen videos taken in the last few months of toasty bonfires blazing in the middle of a street while people gleefully toss in books. Not horrible books. Not terrible books, just books they don’t “like.” Bibles, for example.
In 1822, the Jewish poet Heinrich Heine wrote, “Where they burn books, they will, in the end, burn human beings too.” Let’s not go there folks. Let’s not take one little step in that direction.
Thus in this blog, I’m celebrating these two lovely books written by Dr. Seuss. One of the best small joys in my life was reading his books to my kids.
Happy Reading!
Sue