I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew was published by Random House in 1965 and is among Seuss’s most underappreciated books — a picaresque journey toward a utopia that doesn’t exist, ending with the pragmatic realization that the only way to deal with problems is to face them. The unnamed narrator, stung by a Skritz, tripped by a Skrink, and attacked by a Midwinter Jicker, sets out for the city of Solla Sollew, “on the banks of the beautiful River Wah-Hoo, / Where they never have troubles! At least, very few.”
The journey is an escalating disaster. The narrator joins a camel caravan that collapses. He hitches a ride with a one-wheeled Wumbus that breaks down. He boards a ship that sinks. When he finally reaches Solla Sollew, the city’s only door is locked, and the only key-keeper has been eaten by a Key-Slapping Slippard. There is no way in.
The narrator returns home, buys a bat, and resolves to fight his troubles directly: “And I learned there are troubles / Of more than one kind. / Some come from ahead / And some come from behind. / But I’ve bought a big bat. / I’m all ready, you see. / Now my troubles are going / To have troubles with me!”
Collecting I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew
First edition (Random House, New York, 1965): Pictorial boards with dust jacket.
Market values:
- First edition, fine in jacket: $800–$2,500
- Without jacket: $150–$400
- Later printings: $10–$25
The book’s philosophical depth and its thematic connection to Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (as a grimmer, more honest version of the same journey) make it a favorite among adult Seuss collectors.