Drawn! The Illustration and Cartooning Blog

After digesting the news that Madonna more than likely hired a ghostwriter to pen her children’s books (I’m shocked I tell you, utterly shocked), it got me yearning for the good ol’ days when children’s books were just plain fun, no didactic messages required. (Oh and here’s a quick trivia question: Can anyone name any of the illustrators of Madonna’s books? Are their names even on the front covers?)

Dr. Seuss knew how to entertain and amuse. Not only could the man draw, but he could write brilliant, witty, hilarious stories and poems, loved by both kids and adults. But wait. Did you know that even Dr. Seuss, in his own clever way, was also trying to teach a few lessons? No, they weren’t big fat condescending didactic Kabbalah clubs like the work of the Material Girl, but Dr. Seuss, aka, Theodor Seuss Geisel, had some pretty strong political and environmental views, and some of his messages can be found in quite a few of his popular kid’s books. Check out the site The Political Dr. Seuss, and you’ll discover that “Yertle the Turtle, for example, is a cautionary tale against dictators. The Lorax contains a strong environmental message. The Sneetches is a plea for racial tolerance. Horton Hears a Who is a parable about the American Occupation of Japan. And The Butter Battle Book pillories the Cold War and nuclear deterrence. Even the Cat in the Hat’s famous red-and-white-striped hat has a political predecessor in the top hat Uncle Sam wears in Dr. Seuss’s wartime cartoons.” In fact, as well as creating children’s books, Theodor Geisel was also a political cartoonist. You can find a great selection of his political cartoons at the site Dr. Seuss Went to War.

I have to wonder, though. If someone wrote a children’s book today, with the same wit and astounding artistic talent as Dr. Seuss, but also with some underlying political message, would it get published?