Kidnapping the Lorax

After buying an ereader, I was idly searching the online bookstore for nothing in particular, when I had the miraculous idea of searching for Dr. Seuss books. I don’t know why. Perhaps I was feeling sentimental at the time and had a deep desire to revisit the literature of my youth. Regardless, when I searched for Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, I could not find the book. Instead, a novel titled Kidnapping the Lorax came up on my monitor, and I decided to click on the colorful picture of the cover with sunlight streaming through the leaves of trees onto an illuminated green sword fern. What can I say? I’m a sucker for foliage.

The novel centers around Lacey, the US Secretary of the Interior, who is supporting the deforestation of an old growth forest. To stop the deforestation from occurring, three extreme environmentalists kidnap her and hold her hostage in a campground located in the forest destined to be cut down in an attempt to reeducate her on the importance of nature. Lacey’s first thought upon being kidnapped is “Good God, no! These people are environmentalists!” Its true that her reaction represents what most people probably envision when they imagine dedicated environmentalists- tree hugging hippies that wear green every day and carry recycle bins everywhere they go. Nevertheless, she is forced under circumstances to live with these people for months as she is required to learn survival tasks such as pitching a tent and learning what plants have medicinal purposes.

Lacey’s modern opinions of progress and the kidnapper’s old fashioned idealism clash in a way that is both humorous and serious. Though I laughed out loud quite a few times when reading the characters’ banter over silly things such as the flavor of their organic toothpaste, their more important arguments unearth real issues in the way society treats the environment. Is it immoral to cut down a forest that’s been thriving and teeming with life for hundreds of years for economic gain? I am anxious to read on and discover what impact the Secretary’s time in the forest will have on her plan to destroy the environment.