It’s a children’s book, as most Dr. Seuss books are, but its messages have resonated through a quarter-century because adults love it too, said Philip Nel, director of the program in children’s literature at Kansas State University.
Children’s books “possess an enormous amount of wisdom for the adults mature enough to recognize it,” he said.
Here are a few facts about “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!” and its legacy.
Dr. Seuss knew it would be the last book he published
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On March 2, Geisel’s birthday, Dr. Seuss Enterprises will launch KidsMovingMountains.com, which calls for children age 5 to 18 to share stories of how they’re “moving mountains” in science, technology, engineering, arts and math. They’ll award scholarships and trips to some top students.
There’s never been a film version, but Kansas State University’s Nel said Geisel hoped there would be an adaptation — maybe something “famous as famous can be, with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.”
For his part, Nel said, it’s a remarkable book, but he hasn’t given it as a graduation gift.
“It’s not that it’s not good,” Nel said. “It’s that everybody I would give it to, someone has has already given it to them.”
