Presbyterian Mission Agency the velveteen rabbit Archives

the velveteen rabbit

Presbyterians Today editor explores ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’ and asks, ‘What is real?’

Posted November 30th, 2022

In the 1922 children’s classic “The Velveteen Rabbit,” Margery Williams tells the story of a stuffed rabbit who desperately wants to be real. Snuggled in a little boy’s Christmas stocking, the toy seems to be the most wonderful gift ever. That’s until it notices the mechanical toys under the tree. Feeling inadequate, the rabbit asks the oldest toy in the nursery named “Skin Horse” — because all its fur had been hugged off — “What is real?” And with that, the rabbit’s adventure begins. A century has gone by since the book’s debut, but the message is still relevant today — perhaps even more so in an age of social media facades.