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The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real (Classic Reprint)
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The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real (Classic Reprint) Hardcover - 2017

by Margery Williams


About this book

The Velveteen Rabbit, or How Toys Become Real, is the story of a toy rabbit who wants to become real through the love of his owner. The stuffed rabbit is overlooked by the boy whom he is given, the boy preferring to play with more mechanical and sophisticated toys than the simple stuffed rabbit. The rabbit holds onto a story told to him by the oldest and wisest toy in the nursery, the skin horse, about how toys can become real through love. Eventually, the boy becomes attached to the soft doll, but after developing scarlet fever the doctor orders the boy sent away to recover and all his toys and belonging burnt. The rabbit is so sad over his separation from the boy he begins to cry and sheds a real tear - after which the nursery fairy appears to turn him into a real rabbit.

It has been adapted many times into television, film and onto the stage. The National Education Association listed it among the top 100 books for teachers of children in 2007.

Author Margery Williams’ first children’s book, The Velveteen Rabbit was published in 1922 by George H. Doran Company in London and has remained in print continuously since, owing to its popularity as a story of the power of enduring love.

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From the publisher

?The Velveteen Rabbit is one of many presents. He is one of many around a little boy's Christmas stocking. Shiny presents, mechanical presents, big presents and expensive presents. He is put neatly aside as a never loved toy or forgotten on the floor of the nursery and the other toys shed light on what makes them special. The Velveteen Rabbit listens and despairs. He only wants to be real and he tries and tries to find what special thing will enable him to complete his quest. He looks high and low and eventually happens upon the Skin Horse, a wise and well torn toy who imparts a crucial piece of wisdom. "Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When someone loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real." In the Velveteen Rabbit we all learn how right the Skin Horse was. Margery Williams had a particularly clear window into the soul of a child and into the child's soul that lives in all of us. She taps into the need we all have to be loved and find something to love. The beautiful, poignant story of a toy, only looking for love, and his journey with a child is a timeless classic, often imitated but never surpassed. Generations of adults have been drawn to revisit this gem over the whole course of their lives and then pass along the treasure in these pages to their own children. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

First Edition Identification

The UK printing and the US printing occurred simultaneously and feature yellow-tan pictorial boards picturing a rabbit and seven chromolithographs by William Nicholson (later issues contained reproductions of these). One of the most coveted children’s books for collectors, copies in a dust jacket often appear for over $5,000, with pristine copies well exceeding $15,000.

Details

  • Title The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real (Classic Reprint)
  • Author Margery Williams
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Pages 42
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Forgotten Books
  • Date 2017-09
  • Illustrated Yes
  • ISBN 9781528334013 / 1528334019
  • Weight 0.48 lbs (0.22 kg)
  • Dimensions 9 x 6 x 0.25 in (22.86 x 15.24 x 0.64 cm)
  • Reading level 1050