Dr. Moose has written a Dr. Seuss-inspired story based on the “Sam I Am” character in Green Eggs and Ham, to teach children how to say no to drugs. With Dr. Moose losing one of her own family members to the opioid crisis, the book has a personal meaning as she hopes it will be a welcomed way to embrace the childhood classic we all know and love, with a lesson we must teach our children.

Young readers and their parents are sure to enjoy a colorful, inspiring and easy-to-read tale of a smart and determined youngster named Mason. The delightful rhyming cadence of this short story makes it easy for youngsters to follow and for parents to read aloud.

The book is colorfully titled Gumdrops & Lollipops. This is appropriate as drugs are now referred to as candy and drug dealers are known as candy pushers. The story is about a student who continually encounters the candy pusher, Zee I Bee, on his way home from school. Mason has to learn how to say no, no matter how often Zee I Bee asks him to try the candy (drugs). While the endings of Green Eggs and Ham and Gumdrops & Lollipops differ—where Sam tries the green eggs and ham and likes them, Mason steadfastly refuses—each book illustrates the topic of assertiveness, critical thinking and decision-making skills.

Dr. Seuss Enterprises and Random House Children’s Books will launch Seuss Studios, a line of books for early readers by new and emerging authors and illustrators who will create original stories in 2023. Dr. Moose hopes that Gumdrops & Lollipops will serve as a soft launch that will carry forward Dr. Seuss’s hallmark spirit of creativity and imagination.

Kalisha Eddington, also known as Dr. Moose, was born and raised in the Old Hill neighborhood of Springfield, Massachusetts. For more information and to purchase, email [email protected] or visit Gumdrops.galaxysites.org.