Dr. Seuss and the Art of War : Secret Military Lessons - Montgomery McFate

Dr. Seuss and the Art of War

Secret Military Lessons

By: Montgomery McFate (Editor)

Paperback | 18 September 2024

At a Glance

Paperback


RRP $53.99

$51.50

or 4 interest-free payments of $12.88 with

 or 

Aims to ship in 5 to 10 business days

If you take an interest in military and national security affairs, you have probably read the works of Clausewitz, Sun Tzu, and Thucydides. But what about the books of the underappreciated military strategist Theodor Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss? Until Dr. Seuss & National Security, the military aspect of Ted Geisel's biography and his books have been overlooked by scholars and critics alike. Yet Dr. Seuss books possess direct relevance to national security in part because Ted Geisel's service in the the US Army during WWII made a lasting impact on his worldview.

Numerous traces of Ted Geisel's intense and dangerous wartime experiences can be found in his children's books. Tucked in between bright and vivid drawings of imaginary animals and whimsical settings, the reader may sometimes encounter foreboding dark forests, ariel bombardment, ruthless authority figures, and other evocations of military life. Each of the chapters in this edited volume employs a Dr. Seuss book to illuminate a national security topic. For example, Oh, the Places You'll Go helps us understand grand strategy in outer space, I Had Trouble Getting to Solla Sollew puts new light on Clausewitz's concept of the fog of war, and Hunches in Bunches can be seen as a primer on military intelligence.

By using beloved childhood stories to illuminate national security topics, this book offers an entertaining way to approach complex topics that can be understood by specialists and non‐experts alike.

Industry Reviews

Only Montgomery can take an obscure comparison like this...and make it intensely interesting. After reading the introduction, she captured my curiosity, and I could not set the book down. A stunningly brilliant analysis of Dr. Seuss and many of the most prolific writers and practitioners of warfare. Dr. Seuss and Dr. Montgomery McFate are both national treasures. A must read and bring your thinking cap.

--Brigadier General Martin Schweitzer, US Army (ret.)

Strategy can be fun as well as serious. Behind the fantastical rhymes of Dr. Seuss are insights into the human condition and what it takes to defend our values. Montgomery McFate and her distinguished team explore these insights, and in doing so, throw new light on some of the big issues of military theory and practice.

--Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies, King's College London

More in Warfare & Defence

Man's Search For Meaning - Viktor E Frankl
Unbroken : An Extraordinary True Story of Courage and Survival - Laura Hillenbrand
Blitzed : Drugs in Nazi Germany - Norman Ohler

RRP $22.99

$21.90

The Aircraft Book : The Definitive Visual History - DK

RRP $55.00

$39.90

27%
OFF
Eleven Bats : A story of combat, cricket and the SAS - Anthony 'Harry' Moffitt
The Choice : A true story of hope - Edith Eger

RRP $24.99

$23.75

Band of Brothers - Stephen E. Ambrose

RRP $24.99

$23.75

Nuclear War : A Scenario - Annie Jacobsen

RRP $36.99

$33.25

10%
OFF
The Battle of Long Tan - Peter FitzSimons

RRP $49.99

$38.75

22%
OFF
The Art of War & Other Classics of Eastern Philosophy : Leather-bound Classics - Sun Tzu
Kokoda : Updated Edition - Peter FitzSimons

RRP $36.99

$33.25

10%
OFF