The Lorax is not a story about the environment, it's a story about economics.

I had never read The Lorax before yesterday, and I hadn't watched the movie. In class, we're studying economics when another teacher said, "hey could I bring in The Lorax tomorrow?"

Obviously, I'm familiar with Dr. Seuss - and the book, but I'd never read it. Still, I trust this other teacher who has yet to let me down. "Sure, bring it in."

The rest of this review is going to be a 7th grade social studies lesson, meant to help me remember to come back to this book next year. If there are other social studies teachers out there who want to know how I teach economics and specifically externalities (what they had been calling economic spillover), here you go: (I'll talk more about why The Lorax is about the economy rather than environment at the end...):

I tell the students that the economy deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of goods. We simplify it by saying it's making, sending/selling, and buying/using stuff.



This is why we think about money and jobs when we discuss the economy... making stuff is the job, which allows people to get money.

I then tell the kids a story. I want to get a drink of water. So, I start to pour myself a glass. While I'm pouring, some spills over onto the ground. A flower grows. Some also lands on a baby making it cry.



Why did I pour my water? Did I want to grow a flower? Did I want a baby to cry? No. I poured my water because I was thirsty. Those other things that happened were unintended consequences - both positive and negative - of pouring the glass of water.

When people build a factory, why do they do it? To make money. To make a profit. This is why the Once-ler built his Thneed factory. He wanted to make a profit.

He talks about the Brown Bar-ba-loots leaving, "I the Once-ler, felt sad as I watched them all go. BUT... business is business! And business must grow regardless of crummies in tummies, you know."

Did the Once-ler want the Brown Bar-ba-loots to leave? Did he want the air to darken? Was his intent for the Swomee-Swans to fly away, quieted? No.

Economic Spillover ( externality) = the positive and negative unintended consequences of economic development.

The Once-ler wanted his Thneeds to make money, and make money they did.

The problem is in a completely free and unregulated market economy, profit is god, at the expense of everything else - in this case, the book chooses to focus on the environment... but again, it's really about economics and corporate greed.

Of course Seuss isn't saying buying things (or market economy) is bad. We all have needs. ...But we also have Thneeds: things we think we need. And if our Thneeds are causing more harm than the amount we need them, maybe it's time to re-evaluate what we're buying and why.

Great book. I can't believe I haven't read it before.

The Lorax was my book of choice because you can never go wrong with a classic Dr. Seuss picture book, and I could not be happier with my pick! The bright pastel colors in the pictures both on the cover and what I saw skimming the book made my choice set in stone. The Lorax is about a greedy Once-ler that came to a beautiful land and saw opportunity in business by creating "Thneeds" from Truffula Trees. He got so greedy and opened all these big factories, that all the animals that lived in this once beautiful area had to go elsewhere because of the damage. he cut down all the trees until no more remained, and then everyone and everything left him alone in the area he had destroyed.
I will always love this book, not just because of Dr. Seuss's clever way of writing and rhyming, but also because of the clear moral this story portrays. Although this is a children's book, there is a lesson people of all ages can learn from this; This world is not just something us humans can profit off of, many different species survive off this ecosystem we are slowly destroying and we must always pay attention to the footprint we are leaving on this Earth.
The Lorax is a little fuzzy animal who speaks for the trees and the animals with no voice, and over and over again throughout the book he is warning the Once-ler about what he is destroying but he turns his head to the damage. This makes me think of humans, and how sometimes we think it is easier to turn our heads to what is wrong, when we should really be taking the steps to fix it.
Dr. Seuss uses different visual elements like color and perspective to help us understand the setting of the story, and to really show how much damage was done by the Once-ler's greed through the pictures. At the beginning, the forest is colored with beautiful bright colors to really show off the surroundings, and towards the end, the writer chose dark and gloomy colors to really portray the dark and loneliness of the destroyed area.
In such simple text, Dr Seuss lays a heavy truth upon us on what damage greed can really cause, and then in the end leaves us with a small hope that even though all this wreckage is permanent, there is a small seed of hope to regrow and to cherish what we often take for granted in this astonishing world around us.

*After watching and reading The Lorax by Dr. Seuss*

Pollution is one of the major problems of the world.
Pollution that is brought by thousands of reasons.
One of those reasons include: millions of trees being chopped down (not just in one forest) causing smog to constantly spread and form in numerous parts of the world.
And at some point or another, we will begin to realize that having water and fresh air of high quality, in the amount we wish, and whenever we wish to use it, will become extremely difficult.

UNLESS...

Unless someone can speak for them.
Unless someone can speak for something worth fighting for.
Nothing is going to happen.

Yes yes yes. More books like this one please! I wish more children read this book. However, I also wish more adults read this. Environment is a subject we often ignore. Well, The Lorax is here to remind to it's vital importance.

"Mister!" he said with a sawdusty sneeze,
"I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees.
I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.
And I'm asking you, sir, at the top of my lungs." -
he was very upset as he shouted and puffed -
"What's that THING you've made out of my Truffula tuft?"

A wonderful book about teaching kids about the environmental impacts of cutting trees and polluting the lakes for our selfish needs. It has amazing rhyming with gorgeous illustrations and a very important and thought-provoking message.

5 stars

Clueless and greedy Once-ler cuts all the Truffula trees in a beautiful land to create something useless. Lorax is the only sentient being that tries to defend the trees.

Lorax: “I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees for the trees have no tongues.”

Once-ler regrets what he did. The land is destroyed and the Lorax has disappeared.

Once-ler: “But now, now that you're here, the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear. UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not.”

He will give the last Truffula trees' seed to a child.

“Plant a new Truffula. Treat it with care. Give it clean water. And feed it fresh air.” 

I think that is the most important children's book that talks about environmental issues.
It is the only book that explains to children so clearly the implications of personal greed and selfishness to the enviroment

3rd read
#123 of 2020
Listened to the audio book with my grade 4 class.
They loved it! (as did I)


2nd read
#99 of 2020
Listened to the audio book. Still great!!


#1st read
4.5 stars. Read an Afrikaans translation.

You can't beat Dr Seuss for a great story. I'm not sure where he comes up with the ideas and words but I love them just as much as an adult reading them to my grandson as I did reading them as a kid. Highly recommended to anyone that still has a kid trapped in them

I've been in a reading slump for a while and wanted to rate a book. This is my 6 year old brother's favorite Seuss and I've read it at least 3 times in the last 24 hours. It makes me feel good to be reading, albeit something small. :)

Idk why but I laughed really hard cuz of the illustrations. They did Lorax very dirty.

Incredible! I really didn’t expect to get so much out of this little kids book!! This is fun to read but also has some moving messages about what really matters in life. I think this will become a favourite Dr Seuss book for me

Pretty wholesome book. Childhood favorite for sure.