A review by lilmatt050
The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins by Dr. Seuss
5.0
I have been dreading to read this book not because of the plot but for the mere fact that it is a very long book considering that its a children illustrated books. It surprises me that even though it is relatively a short book compare to an adult novel, it feels the same as to reading a 500-paged book. Luckily I am fortunate enough that this was not a bad book but not a typical Dr. Seuss book.
I have to warn everyone that since this one of Dr. Seuss earliest works, it lacks the usual creative method that Dr. Seuss incorporates in his other iconic works. There is barely any rhyme in the book and the illustrations are mostly black and white which is a complete shame since I love being captivated by Dr. Seuss illustrations.
The story is about a young boy named Bartholomew Cubbins who is practically poor. He lives in the outskirts of the town and from my estimated guess his family are farmers. One day he has the unfortunate task of needing to sell cranberries and to earn quick profit for his family. Meanwhile the King of Didd, King Derwin is heading from his castle to stroll around and see the locals. As a custom when being in presence of royalty, you are supposed to take off your hat and bow and when the King arrives, he tells his coachmen to stop and drive backwards because he witness someone who hasn't taken their hat off.
That individual as you guess is Bartholomew Cubbins. He does have his hat off but for some mystical magical purpose the moment he takes off his hat another hat appears. The King gets outraged and demands that he removes the hat again and when Bartholomew is unable to accomplish that task, he is sent to the palace where the King try out different solutions to this issue. The King tries magic, executioner, bow and arrows, hat expert, and even elders who know the history of the Kingdom and worlds beyond and yet no one is unable to solve this hat problem.
The final option is to push Bartholomew from the tallest tower and to pummel to his death. While all this is going on, Bartholomew is constantly removing his hat and it isn't until he removes his 500 hat that the mystery is solved. When he gets to 500, his hat has changed to the most beautiful and elegant hat and the King decides to spare his life. In the process the King wants all his hats and offers 500 gold coins and they live happily ever after.
While I really enjoyed the storyline, I wish it could have been shorter and could at least had more rhyme to the story. I believe when you have rhyming in children's books, it makes the story flow better and the pacing quicker. If I were a child, I would have been bored by this story and give up midway through. For an early Dr. Seuss book, I will accept that he hadn't come full circle to discovering his craft and his creative flow.
P.S. If you really enjoyed this book and want to read more adventures of Bartholomew and the King then you should definitely check out the sequel which is Bartholomew and the Oobleck.
I have to warn everyone that since this one of Dr. Seuss earliest works, it lacks the usual creative method that Dr. Seuss incorporates in his other iconic works. There is barely any rhyme in the book and the illustrations are mostly black and white which is a complete shame since I love being captivated by Dr. Seuss illustrations.
The story is about a young boy named Bartholomew Cubbins who is practically poor. He lives in the outskirts of the town and from my estimated guess his family are farmers. One day he has the unfortunate task of needing to sell cranberries and to earn quick profit for his family. Meanwhile the King of Didd, King Derwin is heading from his castle to stroll around and see the locals. As a custom when being in presence of royalty, you are supposed to take off your hat and bow and when the King arrives, he tells his coachmen to stop and drive backwards because he witness someone who hasn't taken their hat off.
That individual as you guess is Bartholomew Cubbins. He does have his hat off but for some mystical magical purpose the moment he takes off his hat another hat appears. The King gets outraged and demands that he removes the hat again and when Bartholomew is unable to accomplish that task, he is sent to the palace where the King try out different solutions to this issue. The King tries magic, executioner, bow and arrows, hat expert, and even elders who know the history of the Kingdom and worlds beyond and yet no one is unable to solve this hat problem.
The final option is to push Bartholomew from the tallest tower and to pummel to his death. While all this is going on, Bartholomew is constantly removing his hat and it isn't until he removes his 500 hat that the mystery is solved. When he gets to 500, his hat has changed to the most beautiful and elegant hat and the King decides to spare his life. In the process the King wants all his hats and offers 500 gold coins and they live happily ever after.
While I really enjoyed the storyline, I wish it could have been shorter and could at least had more rhyme to the story. I believe when you have rhyming in children's books, it makes the story flow better and the pacing quicker. If I were a child, I would have been bored by this story and give up midway through. For an early Dr. Seuss book, I will accept that he hadn't come full circle to discovering his craft and his creative flow.
P.S. If you really enjoyed this book and want to read more adventures of Bartholomew and the King then you should definitely check out the sequel which is Bartholomew and the Oobleck.