A Peek At The New Dr. Seuss Book, In Verse

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Harper Lee is not the only author to have a long-hidden book published this year. Lee's new old book is "Go Set A Watchman." The other newly-published work is from the late Theodore Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The manuscript was discovered more than two decades after Geisel's death. It's called "What Pet Should I Get?" It features the brother and sister from the children's classic "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish."

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RAINN WILSON: (Reading) We want a pet. We want a pet. What kind of pet should we get? Dad said we could have one. Dad said he would pay. I went to the pet shop. I went there with Kay.

MONTAGNE: That was an excerpt read by actor Rainn Wilson. And "What Pet Should I Get?" is already receiving praise.

INSKEEP: The New York Times book critic Michiko Kakutani was inspired to write her review in Dr. Seuss-style verse. Here's one of our staff members reading an excerpt.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Reading) Seuss never spoke down to his readers, no matter how small. His tales were told with vim, vigor and zest. "What Pet Should I Get?" entertains us just fine. Who cares if this book's not really his best?

INSKEEP: Not really his best? A bit of edge there at the end, which the best Dr. Seuss books did have, alongside the sweetness and charm. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.