The Velveteen Rabbit is a children's book written by Margery Williams and published in 1922. It tells the story of a toy rabbit who yearns to become real. But is told the only way he can is through love from a child. A heartwarming tale that has remained popular for the last 100 years, this particular excerpt talks of the beauty of love and how it can change you from the inside out. (Be warned, if you ever had a childhood toy then this may tug on a few heartstrings...).

The Velveteen Rabbit

by Margery Williams

“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?” 

“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “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.” 

“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit. 

“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.” 

“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?” 

“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges,
or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

Well then, we don't know about you but The Velveteen Rabbit has us clutching our toys tight and feeling all warm inside. If rabbits aren't quite your thing, we've got some other heartwarming readings that may be more up your street. Or if you're having a church wedding we've got the ultimate roundup of modern bible verses for your ceremony. Happy reading!