Have you ever been really into something (say, the 2008 summer Olympics), only to have something else come along and capture all your attention (say, the entire Twilight series)? If you said yes, you're a terrible person.

Now, now, don't get your feathers in a bunch. Just a little polite joshing among friends. We've all been there, including our not-so-leading-lady Mayzie. And including Dr. Seuss himself.

Mr. Teddy "Seuss" Geisel had plenty of experience with distraction. In his case, though, the distraction was World War II—slightly weightier than Twilight. Seuss experienced something of a political coming-of-age while writing Horton. And that, Shmeussers, complicates the question of what this book is really about.

We'll get to all that, but first some preliminary matters, like what might have inspired Seuss to put Horton in a tree in the first place.