 Book cover | |
| Author | Dr. Seuss |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Dr. Seuss |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Publisher | Redbook (magazine) Random House (book) |
Publication date | October 12, 1957 (Redbook) November 24, 1957 (renewed in 1985) |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 64[1] |
| ISBN | 0-394-80079-6 |
| OCLC | 178325 |
| Preceded by | The Cat in the Hat(publication date) Horton Hears a Who!(in universe) |
| Followed by | The Cat in the Hat Comes Back |
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is a children's Christmas book byTheodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel written inrhymedverse with illustrations by the author. It follows theGrinch, a green cranky, solitary creature who attempts to thwart the public'sChristmas plans by stealing Christmas gifts and decorations from the homes of the nearby town ofWhoville onChristmas Eve. As a result of the townspeople's response, the Grinch realizes that Christmas is not all about money and presents.
The story was published as a book byRandom House in 1957, and at approximately the same time in an issue ofRedbook.[2] The book criticizes thecommercialization of Christmas and the holiday season.[3]
The book has been adapted many times, first as a1966 animated TV film narrated byBoris Karloff, who also provided the Grinch's voice. In 1977, a Halloween prequel,Halloween Is Grinch Night, aired with the Grinch voiced byHans Conried. These were followed with a2000 live-action feature film starringJim Carrey, a2007 musical, a2018 animated film starringBenedict Cumberbatch, a2020 live television adaptation of the musical starringMatthew Morrison, anunauthorized 2022 slasher horror parody film starringDavid Howard Thornton and a 2023Wonderypodcast starringJames Austin Johnson.
TheGrinch is a sour, solitary creature with a heart "two sizes too small" who lives on a mountain overlooking Whoville, the home of the Whos. Having been annoyed by Whoville's noisy Christmas festivities for 53 years, the Grinch resolves to stop Christmas from coming. He disguises himself asSanta Claus and travels to Whoville on a sleigh pulled by his dog, Max. Slinking down the chimney of the first house on the square, the Grinch steals all of the presents, the food for the feast, and even the Christmas tree. He is briefly interrupted by Cindy-Lou Who, a young Who girl, but he concocts a crafty lie to send her away.
After doing the same to the other Whos' houses, the Grinch takes his sleigh to the peak of Mount Crumpit and prepares to dump all of the stolen items into an abyss. As morning arrives, he expects to hear the Whos crying, but he is surprised to hear them singing a joyous Christmas song instead. After much pondering, the Grinch realizes that Christmas means "a little bit more" than just presents and feasting, causing his heart to grow three sizes. The reformed Grinch returns the Whos' presents and food and is invited to their Christmas feast.
The Grinch first appeared in a 33-line illustrated poem by Dr. Seuss called "The Hoobub and the Grinch", which was originally published in the May 1955 edition ofRedbook magazine.[4] Dr. Seuss began work onHow the Grinch Stole Christmas! a couple of years later, around the beginning of 1957. He had recently completedThe Cat in the Hat and was in the midst of foundingBeginner Books with Phyllis andBennett Cerf and his wife,Helen Palmer Geisel. Helen, who had ongoing medical problems and had suffered a small stroke in April 1957, nevertheless acted as an unofficial editor, as she had with previous Dr. Seuss books.[5]
Dr. Seuss claimed he was the inspiration for the character, as his wife's health problems and his dismay with the commercialization of Christmas made him feel "very Grinchish" as he looked in the mirror one year on December 26, 1956.[6][7]
Dr. Seuss wrote the book quickly and was mostly finished with it within a few weeks.[8] Biographers Judith and Neil Morgan wrote that it was the easiest book of his career to write, except for its conclusion.[5] According to Dr. Seuss:
I got hung up getting the Grinch out of the mess. I got into a situation where I sounded like a second-rate preacher or some biblical truism... Finally in desperation... without making any statement whatever, I showed the Grinch and the Whos together at the table, and made a pun of the Grinch carving the 'roast beast'. ... I had gone through thousands of religious choices, and then after three months it came out like that.[5]
By mid-May 1957, the book was finished and in the mail to theRandom House offices in New York, U.S.A. In June 1957, Dr. Seuss and Helen took a month-long vacation toHawaii, where he checked and returned the book'sgalley proof.[5] The book debuted in December, in both a book version published by Random House and in an issue ofRedbook.[9] Dr. Seuss dedicated the book to Theodor "Teddy" Owens, the one-year-old son of his niece, Peggy Owens.[5]
As of 2005, the book had been translated into nine languages,[10] includingLatin asQuomodo Invidiosulus Nomine Grinchus Christi Natalem Abrogaverit. The translation was published in October 1998 by Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers Inc.[11]
M.S. Libby, writing in theNew York Herald Tribune, compared the book favorably to Dr. Seuss's earlier works: "His peculiar and original genius in line and word is always the same, yet, so rich are the variations he plays on his themes, always fresh and amusing."[12]Kirkus Reviews wrote, "Youngsters will be in transports over the goofy gaiety of Dr. Seuss's first book about a villain."[12] The reviewer called the Grinch "easily the best Christmas-cad sinceScrooge."[12] Ellen Lewis Buell, in her review inThe New York Times, praised the book's handling of its moral, as well as its illustrations and verse. She wrote:
Even if you prefer Dr. Seuss in a purely antic mood, you must admit that if there's a moral to be pointed out, no one can do it more gaily. The reader is swept along by the ebullient rhymes and the weirdly zany pictures until he is limp with relief when the Grinch reforms and, like the latter, mellow with good feelings.[13]
The review forThe Saturday Review of Literature stated: "The inimitable Dr. Seuss has brought off a fresh triumph in his new picture book... The verse is as lively and the pages are as bright and colourful as anyone could wish."[12] The reviewer suggested that parents and older siblings reading the book to young children would also enjoy its moral and humor.[13] Charlotte Jackson of theSan Francisco Chronicle called the book "wonderful fantasy, in the true Dr. Seuss manner, with pictures in the Christmas colours."[12]
Some writers, including Dr. Seuss, have made a connection between the Grinch and Dr. Seuss. In the story, the Grinch laments that he has had to put up with the Whos' celebration of Christmas for 53 years. As both Thomas Fensch and Charles Cohen note, Dr. Seuss was 53 when he wrote and published the book.[14][15] Dr. Seuss asserted the connection in an article in the December 1957 edition ofRedbook: "I was brushing my teeth on the morning of the 26th of last December when I noticed a very Grinch-ish countenance in the mirror. It was Seuss! So I wrote about my sour friend, the Grinch, to see if I could rediscover something about Christmas that obviously I'd lost."[16] Seuss's step-daughter, Lark Dimond-Cates, stated in a speech in 2003, "I always thoughtthe Cat... was Ted on his good days, and the Grinch was Ted on his bad days."[17] Cohen notes that Seuss drove a car with a license plate that read "GRINCH".[15]
Thomas Fensch notes that the Grinch is the first adult and the first villain to be a main character in a Dr. Seuss book.[14]
The book has been adapted into a variety of media, including stage and film.Chuck Jones and Ben Washam adapted the story as ananimated television special in 1966, featuring narration byBoris Karloff, who also provided the Grinch's voice.Thurl Ravenscroft sang "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch", with lyrics written by Dr. Seuss himself.[18][19] A prequel calledHalloween Is Grinch Night aired on ABC on October 28, 1977.Hans Conried was the voice of the Grinch. A crossover special calledThe Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat aired on ABC on May 20, 1982. In 2000, the book was adapted into alive-action film, directed byRon Howard and starringJim Carrey as the Grinch.[20]Illumination Entertainment also developed a 3D animated feature film, titledThe Grinch,[21] directed byYarrow Cheney andScott Mosier and starringBenedict Cumberbatch as the Grinch.[22] It was originally scheduled to be released on November 10, 2017,[23] but was pushed back to November 9, 2018.[24] In 2022, the book was adapted into ahorror film, directed by Steven LaMorte and starringDavid Howard Thornton as the Grinch.[25]
Several audio recordings and audiovisual adaptations of the book have also been published. In 1975,Zero Mostel narrated anLP record of the story.[26] In 1992, Random House Home Video released an updated animated version of the book narrated byWalter Matthau, also including the storyIf I Ran The Zoo.[27] In 2009, an interactive e-book version was released for theiPhone.[28] In 2000,Rik Mayall read the book as one of four of Seuss's books on the audio CDThe Dr Seuss Collection. In 2023,Wondery released apodcast inspired by the book, hosted byJames Austin Johnson.[29]
Amusical stage version was produced by theOld Globe Theatre,San Diego in 2007. It also was produced onBroadway and a limited-engagement US tour in 2008. The North American Tour began in the fall of 2010 and has subsequently toured every fall since.[30] The book was adapted into a 13-minute song, performed by theBoston Pops Orchestra, arranged byDanny Troob, and featuring bassist Reid Burton and actor Will LeBow narrating it on the Boston Pops's 2013 CD, "A Boston Pops Christmas – Live from Symphony Hall with Keith Lockhart".[31]
Based on a 2007 online poll, theNational Education Association listed the book as one of its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children".[32] In 2012 it was ranked 61st among the "Top 100 Picture Books" in a survey published bySchool Library Journal – the fourth of five Dr. Seuss books on the list.[33]
The book's main characters have made appearances in other works. The Grinch appears in the animated specialsHalloween Is Grinch Night andThe Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat. Max, the Grinch's dog, and the Grinch himself also appear in the children's puppet showThe Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss. The Grinch, Cindy-Lou Who, and Max, appear inSeussical, a musical which takes its plot from several Dr. Seuss books.
Since the book was written, the word "grinch" has entered the popular lexicon as an informal noun, defined as a "killjoy" or a "spoilsport".[34][35]
A sequel, titledHow the Grinch Lost Christmas!, was released on September 5, 2023, published by Random House Children's Books. The book was written by Alastair Heim and illustrated by Aristides Ruiz.[36]
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