"The Butter Battle Book" was published in 1984. It was received well and became an
immediate addition to the New York Times Bestseller list. Unlike many other bestsellers
of the 20th century, there wasn't a lot of mystery about what made "The Butter Battle
Book" such a tremendous success. There were two principle factors that rocketed the
book to the top of the charts. The first and most influential factor was that it rode in on
the momentum of years of successful Dr. Seuss books. The second was the fact that
"The Butter Battle Book" had direct ties to a highly visible and controversial issue of its
time. These element worked together to make the Butter Battle Book one of Dr. Seuss's
greatest successes.
Since his first published children's book in 1936, Theodore Geisel, better known to the
world as Dr. Seuss, wrote and illustrated more than thirty books. These books were read
throughout the world by millions of children in just about everywhere. He was translated
into twenty different languages including Japanese and Arabic. He achieved the kind of
fame and recognition that most authors will never come close to reaching. Many of his
earliest books are still available in their first edition printing. What is unique about
Seuss's books is that many of them are just as popular today as they were when they were
first published. "The Cat in the Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham" are still read today in
grade schools across the country. Children's Book authors often have an advantage over
adult book authors in that their books are reread and kept with much greater frequency.
The average American has probably read "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish" more
than two or three times. He or she has probably not read "The Firm" more than once,
however. Dr. Seuss had the advantage of writing for children, but not every children's
author sees their name on the New York Times Bestseller list. So what was it that set
him apart from the competition and made him a legend? The answer is not simple or
formulaic. It's a lot of things that came together and made for creative genius.
One thing that distinguished the books of Dr. Seuss from other children's authors is that
Dr. Seuss never underestimated his readers. His books were intelligent and thoughtful
while others patronized children, feeding them fluff. He revolutionized reading for
young children. In 1955 William Spaulding, from the education division of Houghton
Mifflin Publishing, challenged Theodore Geisel to write a book for beginning readers.
Spaulding was a strong critic of the school primer. He complained that a child could not
be encouraged to read if he or she was bored to death with mundane stories of Jane or
Tom. It took Geisel over a year to finalize his most famous creation, "The Cat in the
Hat." The book became an instant success and changed the face of children's reader
forever. One critic called it, "probably the most influential first-grade reader since
McGuffey" (Morgan, 156). At first glance, the book may not seem all that spectacular,
but one of Dr. Seuss's greatest gifts was the ability to make what he did look easy. In
writing "The Cat in the Hat" he was limited to a list of 225 words that would be
appropriate for an early reader. Most of the 225 were nouns, and not one was an
adjective. Anyone who could underestimate the talents of Dr. Seuss has probably never
tried to write a successful book that children would enjoy while limited to only a very
small vocabulary and a simple prose style.
Another thing that made Dr. Seuss special was his creativity. He had the kind of
imagination that is extremely rare to find in adults. He was gifted both as an illustrator
and as a writer. His artwork was unique and colorful and identifiable only with him. He
had his own style of drawing and writing that became his book trademark. Colorful
pictures with hilarious figures, long and thin with expressive faces; characters with
names like Horton and Thidwick, the Whos, the Zooks; made up words that rhymed and
rolled from your mouth or created an impossible tongue twister: these are a few of things
that were purely Seussian. His unique style is still emulated and copied today. If you
browse through the Internet you will come across just a few of the many tributes to his
work. Things like, "The Monica Lewinsky Scandal as Told by Dr. Seuss." It's just a
small example of the influence that he still has today, years after his death. The Seuss
presence is alive in "The Butter Battle Book" and it contains a lot of what are considered
trademarks of his style. But what made the book such a success has also to do with what
made it different from his typical work. In writing "The Butter Battle Book" he
surprised his fans by taking on a topic much heavier than his audience had ever
experienced from him. Writing a children's book about nuclear war was probably one of
the bravest things Theodore Geisel did in his career. Luckily, it worked to his
advantage.
The second factor that contributed to the success of Dr. Seuss's "Butter Battle Book" was
the books relevance to current events. The 1980s was predominantly defined by paranoia
about nuclear war and Seuss's book really hit home with his adult readers. The story of
the "Butter Battle Book" centers around an ongoing struggle between two warring
groups, the Yooks and the Zooks. The dispute began because the two sides could not
agree about which is the proper way to butter ones bread. The Yooks contended that it
was best to eat your bread butter side up. The Zooks felt that butter side down was the
best. The story is told from the point of view of a grandfather Yook telling his
grandchild the history of the war, which has gone on for many, many years. As time
passed the battle escalated, with the weaponry growing more and more advanced. As the
book nears its end, the grandfather heads out to put an end to the fighting once and for
all. He takes with him the "Bitsy Big-Boy Boomeroo," a tiny bomb that is capable of
destroying the entire Zook population. When he gets to the wall that divides the two
nations however, he finds a Zook waiting for him there. The Zook has a bomb too. As
the story closes, the Yook and the Zook stand at opposition on the wall, each waiting to
drop the bomb. The Grandson asks, "Who's going to drop it? Will you" Or will he?"
And the Yook grandfather answers, "Be patient, we'll see. We will see." The tie
between the theme of the book and the issue of the arms race is not even thinly veiled in
the story. The "Butter Battle Book," could easily be seen as a criticism of the dangers
and silliness of war and especially, nuclear power. This characteristic may have been a
factor in the books popularity. At the time of its publishing in 1984, Americans were in
a state of confusion about the benefits and consequences of war.
The 1980s were not a high point for popularity in the U.S. government. Political
disasters of the previous decades, like Watergate and Vietnam created a dissatisfaction
among people in the United States with the presidency and with elected officials in
general. People began to question the ability of politicians to make decisions that
affected their lives and the lives of others. During the Reagan administration moral
picked up a bit, but a few big blows like the taking of hostages in Tehran set back any
advances that were made. Theodore Geisel was among those who had lost confidence in
the U.S. government in the mid 80s. "The Butter Battle Book" was a small reflection
these views. To Geisel, nuclear war was the ultimate example of the dangers of political
power. His criticism was that one man, or one group of men could decide the fate of
thousands, even millions.
A second current event that contributed to the reception of the "Butter Battle Book" was
of course, the Cold War. The 1980s was predominantly defined by an increasing
pressure from the public to and the Cold War. What had begun several decades ago had
continued to escalate for longer than anyone had ever expected. In fact, it was hard to
remember or define exactly how it had all begun. Some traced its roots all the way back
to World War II. Although allies in the war, the United States and the Soviet Union
emerged from the world crisis with growing animosity towards one another that would
only increase in the years that followed. In World War II the U.S. had established itself
as the last remaining world super power, but after the war it became clear that the Soviet
union meant to challenge that status. For years, the two countries existed in a state of
complete animosity toward one another. No real battles ever broke out, but often times it
seemed as if the world was on the verge of a third World War. What made the threat of
war even more serious was the position of the two countries as nuclear powers. If
fighting ever were to break out, nuclear war could destroy entire countries and wipe out
millions of innocent lives.
It is not hard to look at the "Butter Battle Book" and see the warring Yooks and Zooks as
representations of the United States and the Soviet Union. It is a parallel that was easily
drawn back in 1984. The subject of Dr. Seuss's book created a controversy among critics
because they were not sure that it was appropriate for school-aged children. Ruth K.
MacDonald wrote, "of all Dr. Seuss's books, The Butter Battle Book is the most
controversial because it deals with mutually assured self-destruction by nuclear weapons"
(212). It may have been shocking for readers who had come to love Dr. Seuss as the
writer of silly and light-hearted books for children, but it made a deep impression on
everyone who read it. He took a complex issue of the times and simplified it into
child-like terms. No one could justify a war over which is the proper way to eat one's
buttered bread, and when placing war in such a context it made people examine more
closely the repercussions of war in general.
"The Butter Battle Book" was arguably one of Theodore Geisel's greatest
achievements. While in the process of writing the book, he sent a letter to his nephew
calling it, "the best book I've ever written" (Morgan, 250). His publisher, Random
House, was equally excited. The people there called it, "probably the most important
book Dr. Seuss has ever created" (Morgan, 251). Neither Seuss nor Random House were
far off in their predictions. The book won Geisel his one and only Pulitzer Prize. The
feelings about the book are probably best summed up in the words of one of its greatest
endorsers, Maurice Sendak:
"Surprisingly, wonderfully, the case for total disarmament has been brilliantly made by
our acknowledged master of nonsense, Dr. Seuss...Only a genius of the ridiculous could
possibly deal with the cosmic and lethal madness of the nuclear arms race...He has done
the world a service" (Morgan, 252).
Works Cited:
MacDonald, Ruth K. "Dr. Seuss" Twayne Publishers, 1988.
Morgan, Judith and Neul. "Dr. Seuss and Mr. Geisel", 1992.