Long lost Dr. Seuss book published 25 years after his death

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Excitement builds over new Dr. Seuss book set to hit stores

'What Pet Should I Get?' is first original work from famed author since 1990

A new book from classic children’s author Dr. Seuss, “What Pet Should I Get?,” is set for publication next week. Creator of the beloved children books, Theodor Seuss Geisel died in 1991 at the age of 87, leaving his widow, Audrey, and longtime secretary Claudia Prescott to clean out boxes left at home. In 2013, sketches for this project were rediscovered after being set aside after his death.

Seuss published 44 children's best sellers before he died, selling more than 650 million books throughout the years. “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” was the last book in 1990 to be published with classics such as “The Cat in the Hat,” “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and “Green Eggs and Ham” in between.

In February, Random House announced two other titles that will be published along with “What Pet Should I Get?” from Seuss. 

The sibling duo from “One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish” is featured in Seuss’ newest installment.

The siblings arrive at the pet store and encounter all sorts of animals—dogs, cats, birds, and even imaginary creatures posing the ultimate question of what pet they should get. However, in the end they decide “Dad would be mad” and end up with no pet.

Early reviews for “What Pet Should I Get” say readers can expect to see the same old rhyming and Seuss-like qualities seen in his other classics. The New York Times indicated some of his other books may be better stating, “Who cares if this book’s not really his best?” in their most recent review of “What Pet Should I Get?” Meanwhile, the Washington Post raves that the book is just what fans have come to expect from Seuss, writing, "[The book] "gives kids more of what they love about Dr. Seuss stories — short, snappy rhymes that together form a book that’s fun to read aloud."

President and publisher of Random House Children’s Books, Barbara Marcus, announced in April that the books first printing was increased from 500,000 to 1 million copies because demand was so high.

Questions arose as to why Seuss didn’t publish his work when he originally created it and his wife blames it on his imagination.

"While undeniably special, it is not surprising to me that we found this because Ted always worked on multiple projects and started new things all the time — he was constantly writing and drawing and coming up with ideas for new stories," she said in a statement in February.

“What Pet Should I Get” is set to hit bookstands on Tuesday, July 28th.