The Cat in the Hat

Author/Illustrator: Dr. Seuss

Nothing needs to be said about this genre-shattering classic except that the greatest tragedy in the history of children's literature would be for the next generation to think of the Cat in the Hat as "that book based on the movie starring Austin Powers". Already, if you google "The Cat in the Hat," the first thing that comes up is the 2003 IMDB entry for the film (which is a psychedelic deal with the devil) . If I could erase that movie from the collective consciousness of our society, I would do it before you could say "Bippo-No-Bungus". Not to be overly dramatic, but that movie is an affront to good taste and all that is decent and pure in the world. Please, read The Cat in the Hat early and often and avoid the movie AT ALL COSTS.

Reader Challenge: How fast can you read The Cat in the Hat out loud? I timed myself at a respectable 4 minutes and 42 seconds. Beat that! Reading it as fast as you possibly can (without passing out) really takes your appreciation of the cadence and flow of the text to another level.