The List of Books Written by Dr. Seuss (Including the Ones You Probably Forgot)

Dr. Seuss is basically the godfather of the bedtime story. Honestly, you've probably got at least three of his books sitting on a dusty shelf right now, or maybe they’re stashed in a box in the attic. Most people can rattle off the big ones—The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham, the usual suspects. But when you actually sit down to look at the full list of books written by dr seuss, things get a lot more complicated than just cats and hats.

Theodore Geisel—the man behind the pen name—wasn't just a guy who liked to rhyme "house" with "mouse." He was a workaholic. He wrote under multiple names. He wrote for adults. He even had books published decades after he passed away in 1991. If you're trying to track down every single thing he ever put to paper, you’re looking at over 60 titles.

The Core Classics: The Ones Everyone Knows

Let's start with the heavy hitters. These are the books that defined childhood for about four different generations. If you don't know these, you might've been raised by wolves.

• The Cat in the Hat (1957): This wasn't just a book; it was a revolution. Geisel wrote it because he was annoyed that "Dick and Jane" primers were boring kids to death. He used a restricted vocabulary of about 236 words to prove you could teach kids to read without making them want to nap.
• Green Eggs and Ham (1960): This one happened because of a bet. His publisher, Bennett Cerf, bet Ted $50 that he couldn't write a book using only 50 distinct words. Geisel won. No word on if he ever actually got the fifty bucks.
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1957): Published the same year as the Cat, which is a wild level of productivity. It’s the ultimate "anti-consumerism" story that somehow became a massive holiday merchandising machine.
• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (1960): Simple. Catchy. Basically the "Baby Shark" of the 1960s but much less annoying for parents.
• Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1990): This was the final book published during his lifetime. It’s now the default graduation gift for every high schooler in America, though it’s actually a pretty deep look at the "slump" and the "waiting place" of life.

The Chronological List of Books Written by Dr. Seuss

If you want the full picture, you have to look at the timeline. He started in the late 1930s and didn't stop until his body literally gave out. Here is the breakdown of the primary books he both wrote and illustrated under the "Dr. Seuss" moniker.

The Early Years (1937–1950)

1. And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937) – His first one. Rejected 27 times before a friend at Vanguard Press finally said yes.
2. The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938)
3. The King's Stilts (1939)
4. Horton Hatches the Egg (1940) – The debut of the most loyal elephant in history.
5. McElligot's Pool (1947)
6. Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose (1948)
7. Bartholomew and the Oobleck (1949)
8. If I Ran the Zoo (1950)

The Golden Era (1953–1960)

This is where he really hit his stride and created the characters that live on lunchboxes today.

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• Scrambled Eggs Super! (1953)
• Horton Hears a Who! (1954)
• On Beyond Zebra! (1955)
• If I Ran the Circus (1956)
• The Cat in the Hat Comes Back! (1958)
• Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (1958)
• Happy Birthday to You! (1959)

The Prolific Period (1961–1990)

During this time, he got more experimental and, frankly, a bit more political.

• The Sneetches and Other Stories (1961) – A blatant (and brilliant) take on discrimination.
• Dr. Seuss's Sleep Book (1962)
• Dr. Seuss's ABC (1963)
• Hop on Pop (1963)
• Fox in Socks (1965) – A tongue-twister nightmare for anyone reading aloud.
• I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew (1965)
• The Foot Book (1968)
• Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970)
• The Lorax (1971) – His environmental manifesto. He once said this was his favorite.
• Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! (1972)
• The Butter Battle Book (1984) – A Cold War allegory about people who eat bread butter-side up vs. butter-side down. It ends on a cliffhanger that still stresses people out.
• You're Only Old Once! (1986) – A "book for obsolete children" about the horrors of going to the doctor when you're elderly.

The Secret Identities: Theo. LeSieg and Rosetta Stone

A lot of people don't realize that the list of books written by dr seuss actually extends into books where his name isn't even on the cover—at least not the name you’re looking for.

When Ted Geisel wrote a book but didn't want to do the drawings, he used the pseudonym Theo. LeSieg (LeSieg is Geisel spelled backward). He partnered with other illustrators like P.D. Eastman or Quentin Blake. Some of these are actually more famous than his "official" Seuss books.

• Ten Apples Up On Top! (1961)
• Wacky Wednesday (1974)
• The Tooth Book (1981)
• In a People House (1972)

He even used the name Rosetta Stone for one single book: Because a Little Bug Went Ka-Choo! (1975). If you find a copy of that, keep it. It’s a fun piece of trivia.

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The "Cancelled" Six: What Really Happened?

In 2021, there was a massive internet meltdown because Dr. Seuss Enterprises decided to stop publishing six specific titles. They didn't "ban" them in the legal sense, but they stopped printing new copies. This decision was based on "hurtful and wrong" depictions of certain ethnic groups.

The books pulled from the list of books written by dr seuss for new sales include:

1. And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street
2. If I Ran the Zoo
3. McElligot's Pool
4. On Beyond Zebra!
5. Scrambled Eggs Super!
6. The Cat's Quizzer

If you have these on your shelf, they've basically become collector's items. Whether you agree with the move or not, they aren't coming back to the local bookstore anytime soon.

The Posthumous Discoveries (The "New" Books)

Even after he died, the Seuss machine kept rolling. His widow, Audrey Geisel, and his longtime publishers found old sketches and half-finished manuscripts in his office.

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• Daisy-Head Mayzie (1995): Based on a script he wrote years earlier.
• Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! (1998): This was a weird hybrid. He had the idea and some sketches, but Jack Prelutsky had to finish the verses.
• What Pet Should I Get? (2015): This was a huge deal. They found the materials for this in a box in 2013. It features the same kids from One Fish, Two Fish.
• Dr. Seuss's Horse Museum (2019): A bit more educational, but still 100% Ted.

And most recently, talk of a "new" discovery titled Sing the 50 United States has surfaced for 2026. It seems we aren't done with new Seuss quite yet.

Why the Order Actually Matters

Reading the list of books written by dr seuss in order is like watching a man grow up and then slowly get more cynical (but also more hopeful). His early stuff like Mulberry Street is pure whimsy. By the time you get to The Lorax or The Butter Battle Book, he’s trying to save the world from itself.

He wasn't just a children's author; he was a political cartoonist first. That edge never really went away. It just got hidden behind characters with names like the Zooks and the Yooks.

Actionable Next Steps for Collectors and Parents

If you're looking to complete your collection or just find something better than the same three books you've read 400 times, here’s how to handle it:

• Check the Pseudonyms: Look for "Theo. LeSieg" at used bookstores. These are often cheaper because people don't realize they're Seuss books, and they’re often just as good as the main catalog.
• Verify the Edition: If you're buying for investment, look at the "back list" on the dust jacket. First editions shouldn't list books that were published after the one you're holding.
• Prioritize the "Lost Stories": Get a copy of The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories. It’s a collection of magazine pieces from the 1950s that many fans have never actually read.
• Don't Overpay for the "Banned" Six: While they are out of print, millions of copies were made over the decades. Don't let eBay sellers convince you they're worth $1,000 unless they are signed first editions. You can usually find them at garage sales for a couple of bucks.