The Six-Year-Old Reads Books: The Easter Egg by Jan Brett
The Six-Year-Old reading me Jan Brett’s Easter Egg. (Photo: Shala Howell)
The Easter Egg
By Jan Brett
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2010
The Six-Year-Old, on seeing a copy of Jan Brett’s The Easter Egg in our local bookstore over the weekend: “I highly recommend this book, Mommyo. Mrs. Watson [The Six-Year-Old’s reading teacher] and I just love it.”
Mommyo: “Really? Why?”
The Six-Year-Old: “Come with me. I’ll read it to you.”
Mommyo, privately: Sold!
In case you’re wondering, yes, this is a charming book. One I would have liked even if The Six-Year-Old hadn’t read it to me.
The rabbits in Hoppi’s village are hard at work making Easter eggs for the Easter Bunny to hide all around the world for the little boys and girls to find on Easter morning. Whoever crafts the most beautiful egg wins the honor of helping the Easter bunny distribute the eggs. Hoppi is a rather ordinary little grey rabbit who dreams of being chosen.
But having no particular craft of his own yet, Hoppi doesn’t know what kind of egg to make. Hoppi hops around Rabbit Town looking for ideas from the other rabbit artisans in his village. Sadly their skills completely overwhelm his own. Hoppi realizes that he cannot hope to simply copy them, but instead must make an egg that he is proud of.
But when Mother Robin gets into trouble, Hoppi gives up all thought of crafting the perfect Easter egg and spends the last few days before Easter helping her out instead. A caring act that is suitably rewarded at the end of the book.
It’s a lovely story, beautifully illustrated.
The Six-Year-Old: “She draws all the pictures herself, you know. Even those side thingies.”
An illustration from Jan Brett’s Easter Egg. (Image via Amazon.)
This is not a book to flip through quickly. Jan Brett’s illustrations remind me a bit of the artwork in Jill Barklem’s Brambly Hedge series. They share the same sort of painstaking attention to gorgeous detail needed to create a world you could spend hours staring at.
You won’t regret a minute you spend with this book. Not even that less-than-honorable one when you crept into your sleeping Six-Year-Old’s room to steal her copy for your nightstand.
What? Around here, that’s called “Sharing.”
Related Links:
- Book Review: Brambly Hedge (Caterpickles)
- Jan Brett’s author website
- 10 Great Books for Spring (designmom.com)
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3 Responses to “The Six-Year-Old Reads Books: The Easter Egg by Jan Brett”
I must look into this book. Because if it is worthy enough to have on an adult’s nightstand, then it must be a good book. It sounds marvelous, especially since the illustrations are similar to Jill Barklem’s. Thank you for the wonderful review. 🙂
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The six year old has stolen it back now of course. But yes, I do quite like it.
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