The Sneetches and Other Stories (Hardcover)

by Dr. Seuss (Author) "Now, the Star-Belly Sneetches Had bellies with stars..." (more)
Key Phrases: pale green pants, South-Going Zax

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
"Now, the Star-Belly Sneetches / Had bellies with stars. / The Plain-Belly Sneetches / Had none upon thars." This collection of four of Dr. Seuss's most winning stories begins with that unforgettable tale of the unfortunate Sneetches, bamboozled by one Sylvester McMonkey McBean ("the Fix-it-up Chappie"), who teaches them that pointless prejudice can be costly. Following the Sneetches, a South-Going Zax and a North-Going Zax seem determined to butt heads on the prairie of Prax. Then there's the tongue-twisting story of Mrs. McCave--you know, the one who had 23 sons and named them all Dave. (She realizes that she'd be far less confused had she given them different names, like Marvin O'Gravel Balloon Face or Zanzibar Buck-Buck McFate.) A slightly spooky adventure involving a pair of haunted trousers--"What was I scared of?"--closes out the collection. Sneetches and Other Stories is Seuss at his best, with distinctively wacky illustrations and ingeniously weird prose. (Ages 4 to 8) --Paul Hughes --This text refers to the Library Binding edition.

Review
Dr. Seuss ignites a child's imagination with his mischievous characters and zany verses. The Express --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Baby-Preschool
  
• Hardcover: 72 pages
• Publisher: Random House (August 12, 1961)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394800893
• ISBN-13: 978-0394800899
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,925 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars And the Star-belly sneetches had 5 stars upon thars..., December 20, 2000

By	L C "lc70" (Binghamton, NY United States) - See all my reviews

Although best loved for children's literature, it is often noted that Dr. Seuss wrote about social issues. This is one of his best, but least cited, examples. This book is a collection of 4 shorter-than-usual Dr. Seuss stories, but ones with quite significant social meaning.

The first, and most well known of the book, is the Sneetches. It is a story of a society of haves and have-nots (imagine that!), in which access to the goodies of life are determined by whether or not you have a star on your belly. Read into it what you will. Whatever you make of it, it is certainly a commentary on racial, gender, or any number of other social categories! The story's strength is that it shows just how arbitrary and constructed these categories are. Features -- such as a star, but also skin color, gendered attributes, etc etc -- can be used to define people as dominant and powerful, or repressed and marginalized. What is at issue is not which characteristics are used to delineate people into specific social categories or identities, but how people marginalize others by playing up those definitions...

The Zax is a cute little story, which teaches us that compromise is quite important. Too many Daves is equally short and cute, although its meaning is less obvious. I see it as a cry for individualism. Could just be a cute story...

Finally, "What was I Scared Of?" is another really good story with a social meaning -- again read into it as you will. In this story, there is a pair of pale green pants which has no one inside of it. The main character is afraid of them, but only because he never bothered to find out about them... what they were about. In fact, the empty green pants are just as afraid of him as he is of them! When they both realize they are pretty much the same, once you stood face to face with the other.

Five Stars I do give it! Five Stars Upon Thars!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll wear out the book before you get tired reading it., March 22, 1998

By A Customer

This is definetly one of Dr. Seuss' best. Four stories with messages so subtle and solutions so obvious that both adult and child will enjoy them again and again. Time (and repitition) has not dimmed any of their charm. The story of The Sneetches focuses on prejudice. Perhaps the most subtle of all Dr. Seuss stories, it demonstrates the silliness of stereotypes and what happens to those who subscribe to them. The story of The Zax tells the story of two stubborn and inflexible Zax. And what happens when they happen to run into each other. Too Many Daves is one mother's story of naming all twenty-three of her children Dave. But my favorite it What Was I Scared Of? It's a not very scary story of seeing a pair of "pale green pants with nobody, inside them". And what to do if you should see them.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Source for Teaching About Tolerance of Diversity!, March 5, 1999

By	Michele "all*heart" (California) - See all my reviews

"Ronald remember, when you are out walking, you walk past a sneetch of that sort without talking. Keep your snoot in the air and remember to snort. We have no touch whatever with the PLAIN bellied sort!" To have a star on your belly once made you the BETTER sneetch. Then an inventor comes to town who could put stars on the PLAIN-bellied sneetches...for the right price. Now, to seperate them once again, the star-bellies paid a great price to have their stars removed...until one day they realized that it was just plain silly to go on this way: Star or No-star had no true basis in defining who you are. Fantastic lesson in tolerance of diversity!