"horrible, stupid, emasculated, pointless, tasteless little readers"

In honor of the birthday of Dr. Seuss today, allow me to give you the following, courtesy of the Writer's Almanac:

A big study came out in the 1950s called "Why Johnny Can't Read." It was by an Austrian immigrant to the U.S., an education specialist who argued that the Dick and Jane primers being used to teach reading in grade school classrooms across America were boring and, worse, not an effective method for teaching reading. He called them "horrible, stupid, emasculated, pointless, tasteless little readers," which went "through dozens and dozens of totally unexciting middle-class, middle-income, middle-IQ children's activities that offer opportunities for reading 'Look, look' or 'Yes, yes' or 'Come, come' or 'See the funny, funny animal.'"

The answer? The Cat in the Hat. 

(Time, I would say, for another round.)