Great Day for Up

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Dr. Seuss let's somebody else draw his book on "Up" - Rated
"Great Day for Up" is a unique Dr. Seuss book and you can tell this just by looking at the cover. That is because while the book is written by Dr. Seuss it features the jolly drawings of the English artist Quentin Blake. Until this point every time I have read a book written by Dr. Seuss it was also illustrated by Dr. Seuss and when somebody else did the drawings Dr. Seuss used the name Theo. LeSieg (which is "Geisel" backwards). So the fact that this is a real "Dr. Seuss" book drawn by somebody else is pretty special.

This Bright and Early Book provides rhymed text and illustrations introducing the many meanings of the word "up" as Seuss and Blake show beginning readers that this is a "Great day for up!" You get the point half way through the book but little kids should be able to hand on longer, especially when they are reading the book for themselves. Besides, by the end of "Great Day for Up" we get to the point where "EVERYONE on Earth is up!" (with one very important and rather ironic exception).

As with all of the Bright and Early Books for Beginning Beginners what you have here is a brief and funny story, where the words are few and easy, there is a catchy rhythm, and the pictures are happy and colorful clues to the text. These are designed for an even lower age group than the Bright and Early Books that followed "The Cat in the Hat," which was the "Harry Potter" of its day when it came to encouraging even pre-schoolers to discover the delights of reading for themselves. This is not one of the most interesting volumes in the series, but overall these books were a delight.

Explores the Many Meanings of the Word "Up " - Rated
Children are normally confused by the multiplicity of meanings that a simple word can have when they start reading. Dr. Seuss has written a book here to can allow you to help your child understand that problem by looking at what "up" can mean in different contexts. The beautiful watercolor and inked outline illustrations by Quentin Blake provide great context for these meanings.

"Up! Up! The sun is getting up.

The sun gets up

so UP with you!"

Thus, this book begins. You can see that Dr. Seuss has already connected the idea of the sun rising above the horizon in the east with your rising from your bed. The book goes on to explore all the things that can rise. These includes ears on a rabbit, hands, whiskers, and eyes.

Once he goes into eyes, he then points out that many living creatures have eyes (including worms, frogs, butterflies, whales, and insects).

Then, Dr. Seuss returns to "up" and gives new meanings. These include taking something from a lower position to a higher one (like putting your feet up by walking on your hands), throwing things into the air (like balls), guiding things into the air (like kites), climbing (like going up a mountain -- Mt. Dill-ma-dilts in this case), and building mechanisms that can go up (like an elevator or a ferris wheel).

Then, he returns ingeniously to the original concept of arising from bed:

"Wake ever person,

pig and pup,

till EVERYONE

on Earth is up!"

Then comes the surprise ending that will keep you and your child chuckling for years.

At first, you may just think the ending is there simply for humor, but it actually extends your child's understanding of what saying "up" means in terms of cause and effect.

The book has all of the qualities I look for in an early reader. The language is simple. There is a limited vocabulary of short words. The illustrations tie in clearly to the words. The story is interesting, humorous, and upbeat. A child can learn to recognize the key word, up, in just a few readings.

After your child has mastered this wonderful story, I suggest that you encourage your child to use this book to identify synonyms for "up" which will extend the value of the book. For example, you can use "arise" or "rise" in many of the contexts. Then you can discuss how a speaker or a writer chooses which word version of a concept to use.

May all of your child's learning experiences be UP to the ones available in this book!