 The Cat in the Hat is a children 's book written and illustrated by Theodor Geisel under the pen name Dr. Seuss and first published in 1957 . The story centers on a tall anthropomorphic cat , who wears a red and white @-@ striped hat and a red bow tie . The Cat shows up at the house of Sally and her unnamed brother one rainy day when their mother is away . Ignoring repeated objections from the children 's fish , the Cat shows the children a few of his tricks in an attempt to entertain them . In the process he and his companions , Thing One and Thing Two , wreck the house . The children and the fish become more and more alarmed until the Cat produces a machine that he uses to clean everything up . He then says his goodbyes and disappears just before the children 's mother walks in . 
