The Runaway Bunny (1942)

It's the color panels that get me. And, because my mom read this one to me first, in my mind all the other similar ones are copycats... though I've never checked publication dates. ( )

- picture book
- This is a story about a bunny who says he is going to run away, but his mother assures him that she will always be there for him. If he turns into a trout to swim away from her, she will turn into a fisherman. If he turns into a bird to fly away from her, she will turn into a tree that he can fly to. The little bunny decides that he is better off staying with his mother; she will always be there for him.
- This was a very cute family story. It shows children how much mothers love their children and reminds them that no matter what happens, their family will always look after them. The illustrations were beautiful as well (Hurd did the illustrations for the famous "Goodnight Moon" by Margaret Wise as well).

A little bunny keeps running away from his mother in an imaginative and imaginary game of verbal hide-and-seek; children will be profoundly comforted by this lovingly steadfast mother who finds her child every time. -- GoodReads

I like the illustrations; I'm more troubled than I probably should be by the story: I'd like the little bunny to not feel so smothered by his mother. Yes, I understand that her actions are meant to be reassuring, and her son doesn't seem bothered by them. Anyway, some of the pictures harken back to Goodnight Moon and I like the idea of literary references for toddlers. ( )

This book tells the story of a baby bunny who is looking to run away form his mother, but the mother tells him that she will follow and help him wherever she goes. While a very cute story, my favorite part of the book was it's illustrations. I enjoyed how the pages containing words were in black and white, but the pages in between were a beautiful looking watercolor that tied into the words on the previous page. ( )