What Small Rabbit Heard is an amusing story about a windy walk which is perfect for autumn. Despite his initial reluctance to go out, Small Rabbit discovers that he can have a lot of fun in the wind. My daughter laughs out loud at Small Rabbit’s actions which add humour to a familiar situation.
The Story: Small Rabbit doesn’t want to go for a walk because it’s too windy but Big Rabbit insists that they go out. Once they are outside Big Rabbit tries to give Small Rabbit various instructions but he can’t hear her properly because of the wind. His actions include jumping in the mud, climbing a tree and riding on a goat before he hops home to hide. When Big Rabbit finds him he gives her a big hug and tells her that windy walks are fun.
The humour in this beautifully illustrated story stems from Small Rabbit’s misunderstanding of Big Rabbit’s instructions, for example he ends up riding on the goat’s back when he hears goat instead of coat. The text is easy to read (I really like the handwritten font) and the dialogue in the text moves the story along. The illustrations are beautiful, Tim Warne’s rabbits are very cute and have adorable facial expressions, we especially love Big Rabbit’s shocked expression when she sees Small Rabbit riding the goat. The wind is portrayed by colourful swirling leaves, washing dancing on the line and waving grass. A little mouse and a frog join in with the fun and as the story progresses Small Rabbit gets dirtier and muddier.
There are several ways that this story could be used in the classroom. It would be great to read to younger children for topics on autumn or on weather and you could also use it to introduce a game of Chinese whispers to a class. There is a lot of dialogue in the text so older children could rewrite their own dialogue and create a class book with a story about Small Rabbit.
The picture on the end paper shows the two rabbits flying a kite together which beautifully portrays their close relationship. This is such a lovely, gentle bedtime story, perfect for autumn.
Age Range: 2 +
Author: Sheryl Webster / Illustrator: Tim Warnes
Leave a Reply