A Great Balancing Act

By Stefan Kanfer

OH, THE PLACES YOU'LL GO! by Dr. Seuss; Random House; $12.95

The poetics are tight,

and the drawings are loose

in the forty-three books

that are signed Dr. Seuss.

In the days of the past

he would merrily tell

of the Grinch who took joy

in purloining noel.

Of the Cat in the Hat

and recalcitrant Sam,

who refused any meal

made of Green Eggs and Ham.

And of Horton and Sneetch

and of Yertle and Who

and of Thidwick the Moose

and If I Ran the Zoo.

Every Seusspenseful tale,

every verse that he did,

seemed to land on the bed

or the lap of a kid.

But the doctor of late

has achieved his results

by prescribing for those

who are labeled adults.

In The Lorax he chose

as his overall theme

the consumption that eats

at the forest and stream.

And the big Butter Battle

Book spoke with a roar

of the lunatic fringes

who trigger a war.

And You're Only Old Once!

pulled the ultimate hat trick:

making readers think twice

about things geriatric.

But the latest of Seuss

fits in no category.

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

is an all-ages story

Of the creature who wins

after being a victim

when it learns how to live

by observing this dictum:

Just "be sure when you step.

Step with care and great tact

and remember that Life's

a Great Balancing Act."

And recalling the thing

left unsaid by the sage:

that surprises may come

on the very last page.

Case in point, Seuss himself,

who is now eighty-six.

Moral: Who says you can't

teach an old Doc new tricks?