The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes

by DuBose Heyward

Book Overview

The country bunny attains the exalted position of Easter Bunny in spite of her responsibilities as the mother of twenty-one children.With twenty-one baby bunnies to look after, mother bunny Cottontail... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395159903
• ISBN13: 9780395159903
• Release Date: September 1939
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 48 Pages
• Weight: 1.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.6" x 10.3"
• Age Range: 4 to 7 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 2

Customer Reviews

MARVELOUS Children's Story

I concur with all fans of this book on this site. I have a personal sentimental attachment to it, having had it read to me in childhood - and never having forgotten it, either, even without having seen it for 30-odd years until I bought a copy for a family member. This book teaches marvelous things about racial tolerance, as well as gender equality - the little _brown_ bunny proves herself more than the equal of the large _white_ bunnies who laugh at her. This is very subtle, and not a "lesson" - just a quiet, good influence. The book's central message is of the virtue of kindness, gentleness, and perseverance, all quietly conveyed through a captivating tale that sparks a child's imagination. The illustrations, I might add, are phenomenal - beautiful, soft-colored, sensitively-rendered. Each illustration is a marvelous piece of artwork unto itself, leagues beyond the current standard of flat, primary colors and basic shapes; these rabbits come alive, and make the story infinitely more vivid. Want to give your child a memory to last a lifetime? Read this one to them - they won't forget it. I didn't.

possibly the best children's picture book ever written

Your children will love this wonderful 1930s book-- it has beautiful illustrations and an engrossing story. In a nutshell, a mother rabbit aspires to be the new Easter Bunny despite the fact that she comes from difficult circumstances. This book is 100% guaranteed to help your children learn to treasure books and to love reading. Adults will love the values this book teaches: believe in yourself, take pride in doing what you can to help your family, do your best, and never give up. In a charming, non-preachy way the story teaches children that a person's worth is not based upon wealth, appearance, or social status-- that what matters is inside us. The story teaches children that no matter what your circumstances are, you can achieve your dreams. Importantly, the mother rabbit only achieves her goals for the family when all of her children pitch in to help run the household and everyone maintains a cheerful, positive attitude-- it's a lovely story that supports positive family values. I adored this book as a little girl, and I have given it to many other families. It should be in every family's library. I don't think a better children's book has ever been written. This book is a must-have for little girls, especially-- it conveys the message that anything is possible in a powerful, magical way that all children can understand.

A surprisingly modernist book from 1939

DuBose Heyward's 1939 classic, "The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes," is surprisingly modernist given the time period in which it was written. When so much of the world was (and is) focused on heroes and men in general, what a gentle and lovely surprise to come across a book which celebrates the rabbit--a lady rabbit!--who becomes the Easter bunny.With elements of Aesop peeping in and out of the text (not the least of which includes the fable of the tortoise and the hare), Heyward manages to make a rabbit with 21 little children sound not only sane, but brilliant. The Country Bunny (or Little Cottontail Mother, as she is called throughout) gives her children each small chores to keep them busy, contribute to the overall quality of their shared family life, and make them feel like valued members of the group. They grow up to be sweet, cheerful, polite, and industrious bunnies, and the Country Bunny uses their fine breeding to great effect to achieve an audition for the role of Easter Bunny. Heyward's text is inimitably enriched by the sweet pictures of artist Marjorie Flack. The bunnies are plush and adorable, the scenery idyllic, and the colors bright as Technicolor. This is a trip down Memory Lane, even for those who didn't grow up with the book, and a future memory-maker for any child who loves Easter and Easter bunnies.

powerful and true

This is the most powerful book I have ever read.The boastful jackrabbits, the aristocratic snobby rabbits, and the male rabbits who laugh when little country bunny tells them that she will grow up to become to be one of the revered Easter Bunnies - are all proven wrong.Little country bunny grows up, has children, and through the pure goodness of her heart and common sense catches the eye of the Wise Old Grandfather bunny. Ta-da! He asks her to be an Easter Bunny! After trials and tribulations, her determination, caring, and perseverence carry her through, and she is exalted beyond her dreams by Grandfather Bunny. She is wise, and nice, and very humble.I love this story because is beautifully written and teaches that those with good and kind hearts, who work hard and persevere, will triumph. Being rich, big, high-born, young, male, does not matter where it really counts - all that matters is what is in your heart.I first read this as a minority child growing up in a rural community. Now I am a professional in a large city. This book made a difference for me.

The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes

I was born and raised in Germany and not familiar with this book until last week when I overheard my husband reading it to our children. It was the day after mother's day. I was moved to tears. There was the book I should have given to all my (discouraged, frustrated) girl-friend mothers for mother's day! Mrs. Cottontail had the wisdom to raise her bunnies in a way that she did not have to give up her greatest dream. In addition, her children were raised to be self-sufficient, responsible and happy bunnies. What more can we ask? Hurray for Mrs. Cottontail! This is one of the best parenting skills book I have read in a long time...and your kids are going to benefit from reading it, too.