The Easter Egg

Plot: Rabbit Youngster seeks to create great egg artwork, but instead sits on a robin's egg until it hatches, and is rewarded by the Easter Bunny himself.
WHY I PICKED IT UP: Jan Brett's latest? Of course!
WHY I READ IT: This books is HORTON HATCHES THE EGG with illustrations by Jan Brett. Remember that elephant, Horton? Pick up the tale about him and Lazy Bird Daisy Bird who flies away to Palm Beach for a spree and sticks him with her egg. Dr. Seuss really puts Horton through the wringer in his tale, and his illustrations are much sparser than Brett's incredibly lush artwork but Horton is still fine reading. Interspecies egg hatching is retold every generation or two (Lionni: "Whoopsy, it's an alligator!), but do your child a favor -- read him both versions. The truth? I haven't read Horton Hatches the Egg in twenty years and I just read THE EASTER EGG yesterday but Horton is still the more memorable character. But The Easter Egg is just in time for Easter, the artwork is superb, and the story is very nice. Read the endpapers on Brett's book too -- they'll explain why all her rabbits look so different. She's made a study of rabbit species, (did you know that Beatrix Potter had a real pet Peter Rabbit and autopsied it after it died?) and her verisimilitude shows in the fantastic detail which defines her style. Where is her Caldecott, anyway?

Jan Brett's books are guaranteed great collectable books. I can't think of another author with more beautiful illustrations than hers. All of my grandchildren love her books - some for the stories and some for the pictures, but I've never bought a Jan Brett book in which I was dissapointed.
This one is no acception. My 3 year old Grandson loved it and now reads it to his little sister. We even play "I Spy" with the many facinating things to be "found" in the illustrations.

The story of little Hoppi trying to decide what type of egg to make is very sweet and full of good messages. Hoppi first thinks he will copy one of the types of eggs being made by the other bunnies but then decides that he needs to make an "egg that is right for me". As he thinks about what to do he realizes he doesn't have to win the contest and that he just wants "to make an egg I am proud of." Then he selflessly sits on the mother robin's dropped but unbroken egg so that she can sit on the two that remain in her nest. This book is filled with messages that I am happy to share with my preschooler. It does not contain any explicit references to anything religious surrounding Easter so if you want that you should look for another book. The illustrations are up to Jan Brett's amazing, detailed, beautiful standards.

Jan Brett has long been my favorite children's author. Her books are not only fun to read, but also artistic treasures!! There is always so much going on in her illustrations, so much attention to detail. I love that she puts extra information in the small side pictures or in the scenes at the top of the pages, giving children a chance to see some action going on in the background or giving a preview of what's to come next. It's always fun to see how and where she has inserted her favorite animal (the hedgehog) into each of her books. The brilliant colors make her illustrations almost jump off the page - a nice contrast to her usual gentle story lines. I fell in love with this sweet bunny the first time I read through the book!

Author/illustrator Jan Brett has created a visual feast in her newest book. While the illustrations retain Brett's lush, complex style, this book appears to be an homage to the beautiful Easter postcards printed in Germany in the 19th century. From the title design on the cover to the hens who pull the Easter Bunny's cart, you can almost picture the antique cards which must have inspired Brett.

The story is sweet - a little boy bunny finds his own special contribution to Easter - and deceptively simple. While on the surface the book is a strictly secular story, the theme of loving sacrifice could be used to tie this story back into the Christian Easter story.

This one is a keeper - as most of Brett's books are.