Young, old love Seuss, I'm told

Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel once shared the reasoning behind his work: "A person's a person, no matter how small. Children want the same things we want. To laugh, to be challenged, to be entertained and delighted."

How well he succeeded at that — 100 years after his birth, and 67 years after the publication of his first book — is evidenced by the number of young fans he still has.

Pat Waite's third-grade class at Harris Elementary in Tooele is typical. When the Deseret Morning News asked the class to share with us their thoughts on Dr. Seuss, we got a list of favorites that covers a wide spectrum of Seuss works and reasons for popularity that say a lot about Dr. Seuss' ability to connect with children over all these years.

"My favorite character is Mr. Fox," wrote Melanie Paiz. "He is very funny. He likes to say silly poems. My favorite poem is called 'New Blue Goo.' It is fun to say, 'New goo. Blue goo. Gooey. Gooey. Blue goo.' The fox is always saying to Mr. Knox, 'Sir, let's play something else.' I learned that you should not say something all the time, you should let the other person talk, too."

"I like Bartholomew Cubbins because when he's in trouble he always somehow finds a way out," wrote Jacob Redman.

Jena Wendt likes Thidwick, The Big-Hearted Moose. "He lets some of the other animals live on his horns and they're driving him crazy. But he can't tell them to go away because he does not want to be a bad host. He teaches us to respect other's feelings."

Ashlie Talavera likes Sam I Am. "Sam never gives up. Sam is strong. Sam keeps thinking. He finally got the other person to eat green eggs and ham."

Several of the students liked the Cat in the Hat. "He does funny things," wrote Luis J. Pineda. "He is funny, talented and smart," added Emerald Yost. "I also like him because he can be sad at one time, and then he can be happy again."

Alyssa Candelario liked the fact that the Cat makes a very big mess and "at the end he cleans up all the stuff. When my sister plays with her toys, I have to clean up her toys."

Jansen R. Brown liked the fish in the "Cat and the Hat," though. "The fish told the Cat in the Hat to go out, and the fish told the kids that their Mom is coming so you have to clean up." It's nice, he thought, to have someone else looking out for you.

The Sneetches were also popular characters. "This story teaches us not to judge some one by their looks," wrote Adam Mosely. "We are all important. We should not judge someone because they are handicapped, or because of their skin color, or the clothes they wear. I'll try to remember the Sneetches and not judge anyone by their looks."