The series title says it all: The
Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!TM But he doesn't
know everything, which is what makes him the ideal guide to the natural
world. His own keen sense of fun and curiosity is so contagious it sparks
the kids to make their own discoveries. With panache and flair, he is
like a subtle magician who helps reveal all of nature's tricks in response
to clues detected or questions posed by the kids. He helps them explore
their misconceptions so that, through trial and error, they come up
with the logical conclusions. Each time he visits, he takes the kids
on a roller coaster ride in his magical vehicle, the Thinga-ma-jigger,
and delivers them back home, safe and sound and a little bit better
informed. The Cat is smart, impish, funny, playful, suave and, often
as not, lovably goofy.
Sally is Nick's best friend and
next-door neighbor. A picket fence divides their back yards. Separating
the fence is a big old maple tree in which there is a tree house from
which many of their adventures begin. More analytical than Nick, she
is a sounding board for his fantastical ideas. Where Nick is prone to
flights of fantasy, Sally is more practical. When Sally's garden needs
water, Nick says they need a giant hose with 30 nozzles, whereas Sally
says they just need some rain. Fond of playing dress-up and doing arts
and crafts, Sally also loves animals and animals love her.
Nick is infinitely good-natured
and game to try almost anything and, if he winds up getting tangled
up into a knot, he is the first to laugh at himself and the situation.
Impulsive and instinctive, he flushes out problems and tests theories,
jumping first and asking questions later. Nick loves the Thinga-ma-jigger
and it is he who gets to flip the jigger-ma-whizzer that launches them
on each adventure.
The Fish generally knows the answer
to the kids' questions or problems but the Cat always interrupts him
before he can get a word out. His worrying and warnings help intensify
and heighten the sense of adventure, but he never spoils the journey.
The Fish belongs to the Cat, and his bowl is generally a fixture on
the Thinga-ma-jigger.
Thing One and Thing Two love to
help the Cat and the kids solve a problem or illustrate a point with
a lot of enthusiasm and a bottomless trunk full of outrageous gizmos.
They live in the back of the Thinga-ma-jigger and pop out when needed
like a couple of puppies let out to play. They make themselves understood
with their acrobatic slapstick routines and pantomimes and communicate
in non-verbal, musical language known as Thingese.
The Thinga-ma-jigger is the most
fantastical flying, walking, swimming, sailing machine ever invented.
It can go to any place or space - large or small, growing and shrinking
to fit the size of any adventure. This magical contraption can sprout
anything and everything from wings to booster rockets, to balloons,
to skis - just pull the "right" lever and it pops out of a hatch.