Module 12: The Boy on Fairfield Street How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss

Book Summary:  This book is a chronological story of the early life of Theodore Seuss Geisel.  The book begins in Springfield, Massachusetts when he was a boy.   It talks about the things his mom does to help him go to sleep and the bully neighbors who make his life difficult.  The book ends with Ted’s later years and a list of books written by Dr. Seuss as well as some suggestions for further reading.   

My Impressions: This is a well written biography that includes both happy times and some not so happy times.  This book can appeal to all ages, but especially to extremely creative children who are sometimes criticized for dreaming too much.  The paintings in this book are beautiful illustrations that perfectly correlate with the text on the other side of the two page spread. 

Professional Review:  Just in time for Dr. Seuss's one hundredth birthday comes this biographical tribute, an affectionate survey centered on Ted Geisel's boyhood, plus a bit on his brush with higher education (neither Dartmouth College, where he was voted "Least Likely to Succeed," nor Oxford University engaged his full attention), concluding with the first months of his career. Four additional pages summarize the high points and pivotal moments of his entire life in somewhat more detail, but the real story here is of a boy who couldn't stop doodling, who "feasted on books and was wild about animals," and who "excelled at footing around." Krull does a good job of linking such early propensities with what turned up later, visually and thematically, in Geisel's books, Johnson and Fancher provide nostalgic full-page paintings that nicely recall illustrations of the period; a wealth of adroitly chosen vignettes from Seuss's own books (listed at the end) illuminate points made in the text (teenage Ted "knew his art broke the rules," observes Krull on a page sporting a gleefully determined race car-driving fish from One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish). Fans are sure to enjoy meeting the irrepressible man behind the ever-popular books. (Long, 2004)

Library Uses:  This book could be used in a variety of ways in the library setting;

·       Read to celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday on March 2^nd.

·       Use as a kick off to National Read Across America which is also March 2^nd.

·       On the bottom of each two page spread is a character from one of the Dr. Seuss books.  Have a contest to see which student could name the most or name them all first.

·       Use The Boy From Fairfield Street as a springboard for teaching and reviewing biographies as a literary genre.

·       Watch a video about Dr. Seuss’s life or read another picture book biography of Dr. Seuss.  Compare and contrast the information from one resource with what was provided in Krull’s book.

  

Long, J. (2004). The Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel

          Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss. Horn Book Magazine, 80(1),

103-104.

  

Krull, K.  (2004). The boy on Fairfield Street how Ted Geisel

          grew up to become Dr. Seuss.  New York: Dragonfly Books.