The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams Bianco-Bedtime Stories for Kids

"How toys become real" is another name for the picture story "The Velveteen Rabbit" written by a British author- Margery Williams Bianco, and illustrated by William Nicholson. It tells the story of a stuffed rabbit's desire to become real through its owner's love.

The story was first published in Harper's Bazaar in 1921 and was published as a book in 1922. Since then, it has been republished many times. It is famous and ranked 28th amongst Teachers'sTop 100 books for Children.

The story brings us to Christmas when a stuffed rabbit is gifted to a small boy. The boy has many other toys and forgets the rabbit for a time. But soon, the rabbit becomes the boy's favorite when the boy's nanny gives it to the boy to sleep with in place of a lost toy. The velveteen rabbit is once told by the wisest and oldest toy in the nursery that a toy would magically become a real one thanks to the love of the children owning the toy. The oldest toy said "Real isn't how you are made. It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become real".

The velveteen rabbit is surprised by this notice and keeps in his heart a slight hope. As time passes, the boy gradually considers the rabbit as real. One day, the boy gets sick with scarlet fever. The doctor orders to disinfect the boy's room. It means all his books and toys must be burnt, including the velveteen rabbit.

The rabbit is wrapped in a sack and left in the garden overnight. He sadly recalls his life with the boy and cries. A real teardrop comes out and falls onto the ground. A marvelous flower appears, and a fairy steps out of it. The fairy turns the velveteen rabbit into a real one because the boy truly loves the rabbit.

The fairy holds the rabbit close to her arms and flies him into the woods, where he can join other wild rabbits. Next spring, the rabbit comes back to see the boy. When the boy sees him, he discovers that this rabbit resembles his old velveteen rabbit, but he loves seeing the rabbit in the wild.

One more message of the Velveteen Rabbit is: "When you truly love someone, you will be happy if they are happy even though their happiness is not made together with you."