The Velveteen Rabbit (100th Anniversary Edition)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

A cherished, 100-year-old classic gets a fresh and breath-taking new look with brilliant art by Caldecott Medal winner Erin Stead, who has cited this story as an influence on her acclaimed career.

At first a brand-new toy, now a threadbare and discarded nursery relic, the velveteen rabbit is saved from peril by a magic fairy who whisks him away to the idyllic world of Rabbitland. There, he becomes Real, a cherished childhood companion who will be loved for eternity. Treasured for generations, and given new life from one of today's most exciting children's book creators, here is a timeless tale about the magic of boundless love.

Select format:
Hardcover
$19.99

ALA/Booklist

Will entice a new generation of children to read or listen to the classic tale. . . . A beautiful, appealing update of this ageless story.

School Library Journal

First published in 1922, Williams's tale gives children a taste of the longer picture books that were once the norm but with all new illustrations. Stead's delicate woodblock print and pencil illustrations-listed and numbered in the front-match the lovely old-fashioned quality of the tale. For anyone unfamiliar with the original, it is a story of the relationship between a boy and a stuffed toy that becomes "real" by virtue of the fact that it is well loved by the child and essential to his growth and imagination. When the boy recovers from a bout of scarlet fever, the beloved rabbit is thought to be a source of infection and destined for the trash. But magic intervenes at the end, transforming the toy into a real rabbit just as the boy is presumably ready to leave childhood behind. VERDICT Living in such uncertain times, modern children have grown accustomed to seeing hardships reflected in their books; this is a sweet and loving break from that, and a beautiful story as well.

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"Will continue to beguile young readers for generations to come."—Wall Street Journal
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780593382103
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Doubleday Books for Young Readers
Publication date
April 20, 2022
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV007000 - Juvenile Fiction | Classics
JUV040000 - Juvenile Fiction | Toys, Dolls & Puppets
JUV002210 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Rabbits
Library of Congress categories
Toys
Rabbits
Stuffed animals (Toys)
Stuffed animals

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