Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Rate this book
From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere. In this exploration of simple concepts such as colour, numbers and opposites, Dr Seuss presents a crazy world of boxing Goxes, singing Yinks and hump Wumps.

64 pages, Hardcover

First published May 14, 1960

Loading interface...
Loading interface...

About the author

Dr. Seuss

817 books17.7k followers
Theodor Seuss Geisel was born 2 March 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts. He graduated Dartmouth College in 1925, and proceeded on to Oxford University with the intent of acquiring a doctorate in literature. At Oxford he met Helen Palmer, who he wed in 1927. He returned from Europe in 1927, and began working for a magazine called Judge, the leading humor magazine in America at the time, submitting both cartoons and humorous articles for them. Additionally, he was submitting cartoons to Life, Vanity Fair and Liberty. In some of his works, he'd made reference to an insecticide called Flit. These references gained notice, and led to a contract to draw comic ads for Flit. This association lasted 17 years, gained him national exposure, and coined the catchphrase "Quick, Henry, the Flit!"

In 1936 on the way to a vacation in Europe, listening to the rhythm of the ship's engines, he came up with And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, which was then promptly rejected by the first 43 publishers he showed it to. Eventually in 1937 a friend published the book for him, and it went on to at least moderate success.

During World War II, Geisel joined the army and was sent to Hollywood. Captain Geisel would write for Frank Capra's Signal Corps Unit (for which he won the Legion of Merit) and do documentaries (he won Oscar's for Hitler Lives and Design for Death). He also created a cartoon called Gerald McBoing-Boing which also won him an Oscar.

In May of 1954, Life published a report concerning illiteracy among school children. The report said, among other things, that children were having trouble to read because their books were boring. This inspired Geisel's publisher, and prompted him to send Geisel a list of 400 words he felt were important, asked him to cut the list to 250 words (the publishers idea of how many words at one time a first grader could absorb), and write a book. Nine months later, Geisel, using 220 of the words given to him published The Cat in the Hat , which went on to instant success.

In 1960 Bennett Cerf bet Geisel $50 that he couldn't write an entire book using only fifty words. The result was Green Eggs and Ham . Cerf never paid the $50 from the bet.

Helen Palmer Geisel died in 1967. Theodor Geisel married Audrey Stone Diamond in 1968. Theodor Seuss Geisel died 24 September 1991.

Also worked under the pen name: Theo Le Sieg

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
105,258 (51%)
4 stars
49,014 (24%)
3 stars
35,204 (17%)
2 stars
9,801 (4%)
1 star
4,861 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,362 reviews
Profile Image for James.
Author 20 books3,990 followers
August 30, 2017
Book Review
4 out of 5 stars for One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, a children's picture book written in the 1960s by Dr. Seuss. I loved this one as a child, and probably read it around 7 or 8 years old, then again at 10. Between the rhymes and tongue-twisters, it encourages kids to laugh and have fun when reading. Focusing on pets, under water fish are my favorite. All the colors, shapes and sizes. All the things to do with them. Dr. Seuss is a definite children's classic, but with pictures and movies being made, it helps bring it all full circle. I love buying these books for my friend's children, then sitting to read with them. Great memories!

About Me
For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by.
Profile Image for Ahmad Sharabiani.
9,564 reviews106 followers
February 27, 2021
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, Dr. Seuss

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish is a simple rhyming book for beginning readers, with a freewheeling plot about a boy and a girl named Jay and Kay and the many amazing creatures they have for friends and pets.

Interspersed are some surreal and unrelated skits, such as a man named Ned whose feet stick out from his bed, a creature who has a bird in his ear, and one man named Joe who cannot hear the other man's call.

The book was the basis of a theme park attraction located at Universal's Islands of Adventure in the Seuss Landing area of the park, called "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish".

“Today is gone. Today was fun.
Tomorrow is another one.
Every day,
from here to there,
funny things are everywhere!”


عنوانها: «ماهی قرمز ماهی آبی»؛ «قلنگ آباد»؛ نویسنده و تصویرگر تئودور زئوس گایزل؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش روز بیست و ششم ماه فوریه سال 2012میلادی

عنوان: قلنگ آباد؛ نویسنده و تصویرگر: دکتر سئوس؛ مترجم امیرحسین میرزاییان؛ تهران: گیسا، ‏‫1390؛ در 62ص، مصور رنگی؛ گروه سنی الف، ب، شابک 9786009161874؛ چاپ دوم تهران، نشر آت؛ 1396؛ در 71ص؛ شابک 9786009643622؛ موضوع شعر کودکانه از نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م

عنوان: ماهی قرمز ماهی آبی؛ نویسنده تئودور زئوس گایزل؛ مترجم فاطمه آقاجانی؛ تهران: انتشارات دیموند بلورین، ‏‫1396؛ در 64ص؛ شابک 9786009914333؛

یک ماهی، دو ماهی، ماهی قرمز، ماهی آبی یک کتاب با قافیه ای ساده برای خوانشگران ابتدایی است، با یک طرح کوتاه در باره ی یک دختر و پسر به نامهای «جی» و «کی» و موجودات شگفت انگیز بسیاری که برای دوستان و حیوانات خانگی دارند

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 08/12/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
Profile Image for Spencer Orey.
584 reviews174 followers
September 4, 2019
Whoa, this book rules!! There's so much imagination. I've had to read a lot of Dr Seuss to my kid in the past two years, and it's been really hit or miss. Sometimes you get something classic like Green Eggs and Ham and sometimes you get a crap show like Cat in the Hat 2.

So this one really surprised me! It was wonderful. My kid was riveted. Super fun.
Profile Image for Sydney.
293 reviews
March 12, 2008
This is the first book I ever read out loud to my mom by myself. Because of this, it will always have a special place in my heart. We had just moved to Illinois. I was 4 1/2. I kept asking my mom to read to me, but she was busy unpacking boxes. She said, "Sound out the words, just like I showed you, and you can do it yourself."
So in my determined little way I said, "Fine." Later that afternoon, I read it to her. She was shocked. She kept grabbing books off the shelf to test me, thinking I'd memorized them. But I hadn't... I was reading! And I've been reading non-stop ever since!
Profile Image for Suz.
1,285 reviews678 followers
June 22, 2019
It’s colourful
It’s a really good book
It’s the coolest book ever
I’m also interested in it as it’s written by Dr Suess and I like his writing
And I like his drawings
He’s a really good guy
I like it because it rhymed the whole book
It was very very very very funny!

By Indy 7 years of age!
Profile Image for Seth.
122 reviews274 followers
June 12, 2008
(This review is in response to a request as to why I have only given One Fish, Two Fish... three stars)

Firmly ensconced in the middle tier of the Dr Seuss canon, One Fish, Two Fish... is many people's favorite for its light humor, catchy, Moliere-esque couplets, and clever use of repetition as well as surprise, as in the title, where the rhyming word comes at the beginning of a repeated syllable, rather than at the end of the phrase.

It earns its place as one of the most quotable (possibly only Green Eggs and Ham is more often quoted) and fun to read aloud (after only Fox in Socks), but it stays firmly in the middle tier because it lacks three things:

1) The classic Dr Seuss creations. That book doesn't introduce a Who, a Cat in the Hat, Mulberry Street, Green Eggs, Grinches, or other new element to our culture is not a criticism. It does, however, set those books apart as critical pieces that added to our society in some way; they rise above this book.

2) Giesel's overt moralizing. Whether teaching is about size versus importance, making your own fun and cleaning up after it, the futility of war, or even a covert (and possibly unintentional) lesson on ambiguous modifiers, Seuss' classics do what the greatest children's literature does; they remind us as adults of lessons we needed to grow up and need now not to forget.

3) Covert study of a philosophical principle. This may be all in interpretation (no one suggests that Giessel intended these), but many readers for decades have found the Seuss books' repetition and variation of a theme to serve as a metaphor or direct example of something universal. Whether it's a question of imagination in play and its social consequence (The Cat in the Hat), ontological questions about Platonic ideals (Green Eggs and Ham, which rejects the notion that the environment is relevant to the enjoyment of the food), the Freudian question of experience and its ability to drive all future behavior (How the Grinch Stole Christmas), or a more complex example such as To Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street, which combines all of the above in various ways), the very best of Seuss takes a universal question and circles it, showing us various views in fanciful ways while using childlike tropes to strip the question down to its abstract base. It doesn't do this because Giessel intended to be a philosopher, but because he though about children and learning in deep ways inherent to the essence of experiencing humanity.

In this context, One Fish, Two Fish... is a fine and enjoyable book, and one that I will enjoy reading many times; its three-star rating is only because it is a relative trifle in the Seuss canon when seen next to his many masterpieces. It isn't one you'll go back to over decades for inspiration, when teaching your children, or as an example to understand or explain a principle implicit to Giessel's thinking and vital to us all.

It's a great book. Get it. Read it. But it earns an "I Liked It" on the Goodreads scale. Don't think of passing up Fox in Socks, Horton Hears a Who, The Cat in the Hat, or other of his classics in favor of this one.
Profile Image for Jan.
184 reviews12 followers
February 11, 2024
I read it once
I read it twice
I may have even read it thrice
I like this more than any other
I don't know why
I'll ask my mother
Profile Image for Archit.
825 reviews3,209 followers
October 28, 2016
Another ball out of the canon from Dr. Seuss.

“From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere!”


Simply remarkable with the tongue twister of a rhythm. Enjoyment knows no bounds and age is just a number. The tune of this poem is hard to get out of the head.

ALL YOUR LIFE!

I am reading this to my kids. No more the simple 4 lines of Humpty Dumpty.

Dr. Seuss has arrived in their lives.
Profile Image for Prabhjot Kaur.
1,055 reviews192 followers
May 31, 2021
From there to here,
from here to there,
funny things
are everywhere.


Today is gone. Today was fun.
Tomorrow is another one.
Every day,
from here to there,
funny things are everywhere.


Dr. Seuss's books are always fun to read and make me smile. This book has his usual catchy rhyming and fun, colorful illustrations.

4 stars
Profile Image for ♥ℂĦℝΪՖƬΪℕÅ.
230 reviews3,954 followers
November 13, 2018
4 Awesome-sauce ★'s

“Today is gone. Today was fun.
Tomorrow is another one.
Every day,
from here to there,
funny things are everywhere!”


This picture book is from the 1960's and is by none other than the genius Dr. Seuss himself. It's perfect for reading aloud with its simple words, its easy to read with a known vocabulary, colors and short tales and superb rhyming which makes it a tone of fun for people of all ages. Per his usual, Dr. Seuss's books are always whimsical and witty. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish is absolutely perfect for teaching children some numbers and colors. The illustrations are bright, colorful and bold. Really this is such a fun read and your little ones will LOVE it :)
Profile Image for Jason Koivu.
Author 7 books1,323 followers
December 6, 2012
Sheer poetry!

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish is a pure genius work of epic poetry. The beginning of the tale focuses on...you guessed it...fish. Pages and pages of fish with various characteristics (mostly harmless) are paraded before the reader in flashes of color and humor. But then (and this is where Dr. Seuss lost a star rating from me) the story veers off and begins introducing a random cast of beings more strange than an assortment of beasties rejected from a circus of the bizarre for being too grotesque for the relatively polite society of carnies. Most appear to have been enslaved by a young boy and girl who claim these poor creatures are "pets," while forcing them into hard labor or using their mortal frames in mocked up games. Those who escape torture at the hands of the children are often no more fortunate. Take "Ned" for example. Ned does not fit in his bed, not his feet nor his head. It's absolutely tragic...
Profile Image for Wren (fablesandwren).
673 reviews1,577 followers
September 17, 2020
Rhymes Rhymes Rhymes, My My My

Dr. Seuss is a classic and a poet and... no, I'm not going to be that cliché.



There wasn't much lesson with this one like some that he has, or purpose really. I think really he wanted to show kids that your imagination is important. Because obviously a lot of the things said are impossible, but the impossible is fun, you know? It is important to be impossible.
Profile Image for Mischenko.
1,021 reviews96 followers
May 27, 2017
There are so many Dr. Seuss books that I love. One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish was a childhood favorite for sure. It still remains a treasure because the simple words and rhymes encourage children to read and they love it. Children love the colorful illustrations too.

5*****
Profile Image for  Cookie M..
1,265 reviews135 followers
February 8, 2020
Oh, how I wanted to actually meet these wondrous creatures from the amazing imagination of Dr. Seuss when I was little.
Matter of fact, there are a few of them I wouldn't mind having as pets even now.
Profile Image for James.
437 reviews
September 14, 2017
More fun for the younger reader from the pen of Dr Seuss - lovely rhymes and illustrations as per usual and lots of fun.
Profile Image for Moonkiszt.
2,405 reviews279 followers
October 15, 2021
Featured in a grandma reads session.

As I've previously mentioned, the members of my group are growing faster than my list to read to them is shortening, and some of the books in that list are for kids younger than they are - so I'm weeding the list and either tossing old book choices or reading the keepers off the list. This book is the latter - who passes up One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish??? It's Dr. Seuss! There was a month or two in my first few years of life that I told anyone who would listen that I was going to marry him (along with Captain Kangaroo, Mr. Green Jeans, my Dad, and a neighbor boy). It was my favorite book until I was four and my tastes got more sophisticated.

Because I had the odd thought that this might be the last time I ever read this book, I switched up the reading. Instead of my dulcet tones zooming to each of my listeners, I asked them to rotate, each reading a page to me and the group. They eagerly complied, and earnestly waited their turn. It was very sweet to hear those voices read the words of a book I've probably read at least a hundred times. I won't forget this, as these dear people grow lanky, tall, deep-voiced and angst-filled, and our sessions morph into other ways to love each other.
Profile Image for Shaun.
61 reviews135 followers
August 6, 2019
I was expecting this book to be about two (or possibly four 🤔) different colored fish — boy was I wrong! Rather, hoards of characters of all shapes and sizes are introduced in quick succession, most of them not sea-dwellers at all.

I felt the author could’ve explored each character in more depth, but hey, as a doctor I’m sure he’s very busy.
Profile Image for Daniel Clausen.
Author 10 books490 followers
December 30, 2019
One book, two book, red book, blue book...what a wonderful year it has been for reading! Instead of my normal book review, I thought I would use this last book review of the year to reflect on the year of reading. 2019 proved the old adage that the best investments are in old books and old friends. Since I consider books I've read before as old friends, it was a good year indeed!

The best of my re-reads included Murakami Haruki's Sputnik Sweetheart and Norwegian Wood. My own book "The Underground Novel", my satirical self-help novel, which I finished last year. Tales from the Irish Club by my old English teacher Lester Goran, the writing of Henry David Thoreau. I haven't decided what I will re-read next year, but shockingly that might include a biography of Elon Musk.

That brings me to my biggest surprise of the year: a biography of Elon Musk. Though the writing was not a literary masterpiece, the subject matter was enthralling. So much so that I had to reflect on a simple question: Do I love biographies as a genre? It appears I do. One of my favorite books is a biography of Orson Welles. Thus, next year I'll do everything I can to lay my hands on more biographies.

2019 was also a year of science. I read no less than three science books, my worst subject and enjoyed each of them. One of these books might find it onto my re-read list. One of the difficult things about reading science is that my critical blinkers are often turned off. I'm not sure how to engage these books in book reviews other than to note their value as entertainment, the accessibility, and their ability to motivate me to read other science books. Still, I'm not deterred. I will read at least one science book next year.

2019 was also the year of "The Boys". I finally finished the comic book series I started when I was in graduate school. Why? I had to. I couldn't have the series ruined for me by things people were saying about the Amazon series. (I'm sure the Amazon series is fine, but I will always think of the series as something inspired by Bush-era silliness).

The biggest disappointment this year: The big-think books. Nicholas Nassim Taleb is still a dazzling philosopher, but his newest book seems to see him indulge in his worst habits (picking petty fights with people who seem to annoy him on social media) rather than deepening and enriching his philosophy. At this point too, I seemed to have become able to anticipate what will be written in any given chapters (though to his credit he still has some surprises, read the section on -- How the Intolerant Minority wins!); 7 Habits of Successful People was a minor bust; The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck and Essentialism were good books, but their usefulness for me was limited. I had already gotten their messages a long time ago. Alas, there was not a big "rethink" moment for me in 2019.

Perhaps that means I'm just getting older and my reading is leading to a wiser life. Perhaps the big-think moments are actually in the genre of biography, not big think books. Actually, I'm pretty sure that's it.

Having written all this, what is my take away for reading in 2020. Well, less but better. 30 books is fine for 2020 if they are the right ones. Spend more time vetting my books. Don't just pick up something because it seems convenient at the moment. It's hard to do, but it will pay off in the end.

"I took the long way to choosing a book," I will write at the end of 2020, and I was all the better for it.

Profile Image for Brad.
Author 2 books1,791 followers
July 30, 2011
When I reach for a Dr. Seuss, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish is never the book I reach for. If I need something quick because the kids are late for bed, I grab The Sneetches and pick a tale. If there's more time, but I'm still in a hurry, Green Eggs and Ham is the perfect choice. When two year old Scoutie wants a book, I grab the easiest Seuss of them all, Hop on Pop (just as I did when the twins were babes). If I want to have some fun for myself, I grab the tongue twisterrific Fox in Socks, and if it's closing in on Christmas, How the Grinch Stole Christmas is the obvious choice.

Hell, I am even more likely to read the Seuss-lite Go Dog. Go than One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. But if my kids grab it, and Scoutie's been doing that a lot lately, I'll gladly traverse the bizaare landscape of One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. Of all Seuss's book, this is the least cohesive. It's just an excuse to rhyme. Nothing more than that. Mr. Brown makes an odd appearance. There's whiny Ned in his too small bed. Yet there's that great line: "From there to here, from here to there funny things are everywhere," and it's some of Seuss's best art. It's a good book. the kids love it, and Scoutie can't get enough.

Honestly, I love it too. But I never reach for it and probably never will, which is okay ... it always winds up in my hands somehow.
Profile Image for Stephen.
1,516 reviews11.7k followers
August 16, 2010
3.0 stars. Another clever, original Children's story by the legendary Dr. Seuss. Not his best, but still great to read with the kids.
Profile Image for Sarah Sammis.
7,438 reviews243 followers
January 12, 2009
One of the joys of being a parent is sharing old favorites with my children. Harriet and Sean are now discovering Dr. Seuss. We are reading through all of his books and have landed on my all time favorite: One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. From the time I was Harriet's age to being in second or third grade, I read this book on an almost daily basis. I really don't know how many times I've read it (either listening to it being read by one of my parents or reading it myself).

One Fish, Two Fish... begins with this little dedication: "From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere." This book revels in the silly. It starts off simply enough with fish of different color and fish of different ages. Then it spirals out of control with fish driving cars and even sillier things.

The book doesn't have a plot. It's a series of tongue twisters presented as short scenes, almost like vaudeville routines. Witnessing these different examples of silly are a boy and a girl (or a Sean and a Harriet as my children see things). They watch creatures run (just for fun), different animals with different feet (and numbers of legs), and they go on a ride with Mr. Gump's Wump. There is Ned and his bed with holes in the most annoying of places. I wonder if he'll ever get a descent night's sleep? There are animals for opening cans, and others for boxing, ones who have hair for brushing and so forth.

In all of this silliness are Dr. Seuss's illustrations. All of the creatures have Seuss's unique style, being somewhat shaggy (even the fish). I can remember sometimes just flipping through the book to enjoy the drawings. My favorites are the pink ink drinking yink, can opening zans, the sleep walking sheep and the hook cook book.
Profile Image for jenna Hudrlik.
429 reviews42 followers
October 29, 2007
i know everyone will probably hate me for not liking this but it is a pain to read to your child - a bunch of nonsense words rhyming does not always entertain - and in this case neither me or caroline were entertained.
3 reviews
October 6, 2023
Great book but had an ending I never saw coming. When you hear one fish two fish you automatically think 3 fish 4 fish right? WRONG Seuss threw us a curveball and went on the color train with red fish blue fish. It made me mad for a bit but I eventually caught on and it made the story come to life.
Profile Image for Robin Hobb.
Author 289 books103k followers
February 25, 2013
"Who am I? My name is Ned". I will always hear these lines in my father's voice as he read them out loud, with delight, to my little brother. A great book for any kid in your life.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,362 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.