Chill Out! Read online

  TM and copyright © by Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. 2012. All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York. This collection contains the following four works originally published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books as “2 Books in 1” Pictureback® Books: A Long Winter’s Nap / Flight of the Penguin in 2011 and A Reindeer’s First Christmas / New Friends for Christmas in 2012.

  Random House and the colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Based in part on The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! TV series (Episodes 21 and 33) and on The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About Christmas! holiday special © CITH Productions, Inc. (a subsidiary of Portfolio Entertainment, Inc.), and Red Hat Animation, Ltd. (a subsidiary of Collingwood O’Hare Productions, Ltd.), 2010–2012.

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  Library of Congress Control Numbers for the titles in this collection are available upon request.

  ISBN: 978-0-449-81408-6 (ebook)

  First E-Omnibus Edition

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  v3.1

  Contents

  Copyright

  A Long Winter’s Nap

  Flight of the Penguin

  A Reindeer’s First Christmas

  New Friends for Christmas

  “It’s dark out, but I’m

  wide awake,” Sally said.

  “Me too,” said Nick.

  “I’m not ready for bed.”

  They tried reading a story.

  They tried counting sheep.

  Then they heard a voice call,

  “You should go to Gleep Sneep!”

  The kids knew that voice.

  The kids knew that hat.

  There was only one Cat

  who said “Gleep Sneep” like that!

  “We’re sleepy,” said Nick,

  “but we’re wide awake, too.”

  “Don’t worry,” the Cat said.

  “I know what to do.

  To the Whispering Wood

  we must go! That is where

  you can meet my dear friend,

  good old Boris the Bear.

  He lives deep in the woods

  to the east of Gleep Sneep,

  and he knows lots of ways

  to help you fall asleep.”

  They soon landed inside of

  the Whispering Wood.

  Nick asked, “Should we whisper?”

  The Cat said, “We should.”

  “Cat, is that you?”

  Boris said with a smile.

  “Haven’t seen you in ages.

  It’s been a long while.

  I’m so glad to see you,

  but what brings you here?

  It’s freezing in Gleep Sneep

  this time of the year.”

  “We need help,” said Sally.

  “We can’t get to sleep.”

  “Well,” said Boris, “you’ll find

  lots of help in Gleep Sneep!

  When it comes to sleeping,

  I know every trick.”

  “We can use all the help

  we can get,” answered Nick.

  “Do you know,” Boris asked,

  “about my situation?

  I’m just getting ready

  for my hibernation.

  It’s a bear’s winter nap.

  It’s a very long thing.

  I go to sleep in the fall

  and wake up in the spring.”

  Then Boris saw something

  and started to shake.

  “Oh no,” he cried. “Look!

  I just saw a snowflake!

  As soon as I see one,

  I have to get going.

  I have to start sleeping

  before it starts snowing!”

  “We’ll help you,” said Sally,

  “get ready to rest.

  When it comes to helping,

  we three are the best.”

  “Thank you!” said Boris.

  “Come on, follow me

  to my snuggly home under

  the roots of this tree.”

  “I need a big pile that’s

  at least three feet deep

  of twigs, leaves, and branches

  before I can sleep.”

  They found armfuls of twigs,

  leaves, and branches, and then

  they built a deep pile

  inside Boris’s den.

  Then suddenly they heard

  a very strange rumble.

  “My stomach,” said Boris,

  “is starting to grumble.

  I now need to eat

  a meal fit for a king.

  It will be my last meal

  until sometime next spring.”

  The Cat called in the cooks!

  (Thing One and Thing Two.)

  “They will cook,” said the Cat,

  “a fine dish just for you!”

  So those cooks started cooking

  and they did not stop.

  Nuts and Berries Supreme

  with leaves sprinkled on top!

  Boris ate the whole thing.

  That bear ate every bite.

  Then he said, “Very soon,

  you can tuck me in tight.

  But before I can sleep,

  there’s one thing I must do.

  I must go to the bathroom

  and you can go, too.”

  Boris soon settled down.

  “Now I’m sleepy,” he said.

  “Here’s a pillow of leaves

  to put under my head.

  I’m ready to start

  to hibernate.

  I’ll see you in springtime.

  I’ll miss you, but …

  … WAIT!

  I can’t hibernate yet

  in my den in Gleep Sneep.

  I promised to help

  both of you fall asleep!”

  “I have an idea,”

  said the Cat. “I will try

  to sing to you a

  nighty-night lullaby.”

  So they all snuggled down

  by the light of the moon,

  and the Cat in the Hat

  began singing a tune.

  “When the weather turns cold

  and the snow grows deep,

  a bear curls up

  for a very long sleep.

  The name of this sleep

  is hibernation,

  and it takes lots of

  careful preparation.”

  “Hear that?” whispered Sally.

  “Your song worked so well.

  Boris is snoring!

  He’s asleep, I can tell.

  He went to the bathroom.

  He’s comfy and fed.

  Now we should go home

  and get ready for bed.”

  Back home Nick said, “Now

  we can sleep the night through,

  but we can’t hibernate

  like a bear gets to do.”

&nbs
p; They got under the covers.

  The Cat yawned. “Good night!”

  Then he reached out his tail

  and he turned out the light.

  “How I wish I could fly!”

  said Nick. “Oh, it’s true.

  If my arms were wings,

  here is just what I’d do.

  I’d go swooping and swooshing

  and fly up so high,

  I’d look down on the clouds

  floating by in the sky.

  I’d go zinging and winging

  and spend all day soaring.

  I don’t think that flying

  would ever get boring!”

  “You’re right!” said the Cat.

  “And I also have heard

  to learn about flying,

  you should ask a bird.

  I know lots of birds,

  so today I’ll take you

  all the way to the west coast

  of Shiver-Me-Blue.

  It’s frosty and freezing

  and covered in snow

  and home to a very

  smart penguin I know.”

  “Meet Percy the Penguin.”

  Then Percy said, “Hi!”

  “Can you help us?” asked Nick.

  “Can you teach us to fly?”

  “No, I can’t,” Percy said.

  “My wings are too small.

  Penguins can’t fly.

  No, we can’t fly at all.

  We cannot lift off

  and get free of the ground.

  But I’ll show you some other ways

  we get around.”

  “We can waddle! Come try it!

  Just rock side to side.

  I was able to waddle

  the first time I tried.”

  “Hello!” cried a voice.

  “I can fly. Look at me!

  I can soar and, what’s more,

  it comes easily.

  I’m Gary the Gull,

  and I fly night and day

  up high in the sky.

  I get places that way.”

  “Look at my feathers!

  They’re thin and they’re long.

  When I flap my wings,

  they move me along.”

  “My feathers,” said Percy,

  “which are short and thick,

  keep me warm and dry.

  Yes, they do the trick.”

  “My wings,” Gary said,

  “take me any old place.

  Hey, Percy, why don’t

  you and I have a race?

  The first one to get to

  that iceberg will win!”

  “You’re on!” Percy cried.

  “I will race you. I’m in!”

  “On your mark!” cried the Cat.

  “Get ready, set, GO!”

  “Who will win?” Nick asked Sally.

  Sally said, “I don’t know.”

  Those birds started racing.

  “The thing is,” said Nick,

  “Percy can waddle,

  but he isn’t quick.”

  “So long, Percy!” called Gary.

  “I’m flying so fast.

  I’ll soon be in first place

  and you will be last!”

  “Percy is falling

  behind,” Sally sighed.

  Then Percy did something.

  He started to …

  … slide!

  “I can’t fly like Gary,”

  he cried. “That is true.

  But here is something

  all penguins can do!

  I can slide all the way

  across Shiver-Me-Blue.”

  “Let’s go!” cried the Cat.

  “We can go sliding too!”

  They were sliding so fast

  down each slick, icy curve.

  “Lean left!” the Cat cried,

  and they started to swerve.

  They flew through a snowbank

  and started to drop.

  “There’s the ocean!” yelled Nick.

  “I don’t think we can stop!”

  “Here we go!” Percy cried.

  “Get ready! Hold on!”

  He dove into the water

  and then he was gone.

  “We’re going swimming,”

  cried Nick, “in Shiver-Me-Blue!”

  But then they were rescued

  by Thing One and Thing Two.

  Meanwhile, Gary rested.

  “I’m so far ahead,

  that penguin will never

  beat me,” Gary said.

  But below in the ocean

  what he couldn’t spot

  was that Percy was swimming

  as fast as a shot.

  Underwater he swam

  with style and with grace.

  “I know,” Percy said,

  “I will soon win this race.”

  He flew through the water.

  “Yes, this race is mine!”

  Then he slid on his tummy …

  … over the finish line!

  “Well, I’ll be!” said Gary.

  “You did it. You won!

  Congratulations, Percy!”

  Percy said, “That was fun.

  I did win this time,

  but the next time we race,

  you will be the bird

  who comes in first place.”

  “We need to get back,”

  said the Cat. “Now let’s fly!”

  Percy, Gary, and all their

  new friends waved goodbye.

  Back home Nick said, “Watch!

  I’ve just learned something new.

  Here’s what Percy taught me

  in Shiver-Me-Blue.

  It’s a brand-new trick

  that I just started trying.

  I’m slipping and sliding

  and gliding and …

  … flying!”

  Hello there. I’m Ralph.

  I’ve a story to tell

  about my first Christmas.

  It didn’t go well.

  I went to the Cat’s big

  Christmas celebration,

  but I somehow turned into

  a big decoration!

  There was lots of food

  but, unfortunately,

  I couldn’t find any

  reindeer moss for me.

  When the party was over,

  guests started to leave.

  I had to get home for

  my first Christmas Eve.

  “I’ll take you!” the Cat said.

  “Jump in, if you please.

  I’ll fly you back home

  to far-off Freeze-Your-Knees.”

  My stomach was rumbling.

  I wanted a snack.

  “Let’s hurry,” I told him.

  “I need to get back.”

  But …

  you know what happens

  when that Cat takes flight.

  Somehow or other,

  things never go right.

  Our first stop was Sally’s,

  where I slipped on some ice.

  Then I met a reindeer

  who wasn’t so nice.

  Did I see reindeer moss

  on Sally’s Yule tree?

  It might have been moss,

  but it wasn’t for me.

  We took off again

  and I thought, This is great.

  It’s my first Christmas Eve

  and I’m bound to be late.

  What happened next

  I could not understand.

  Popcorn flew around us

  and we had to land!

  The Radia-toozle

  was leaking! “Oh my!

  Until it is fixed

  I’m afraid we can’t fly!

  We need water,” the Cat said,

  “and then we will go.”

  But where to find water?

  Did anyone know?

  Then we met some elephants

  w
ho were on their way,

  traveling together

  to spend Christmas Day.

  I soon learned that elephants

  can always tell

  where to find water.

  They smell it quite well.

  I tried to help them

  but got lost instead

  in tall, itchy grass

  with a bug on my head!

  It was sticky and hot

  and I thought, We are sunk.

  Then an elephant smelled

  something fresh with her trunk.

  Water! They found it!

  Our friends saved the day.

  The Thinga-ma-jigger

  got fixed right away.