Magic Rabbit [Hardcover]

Annette LeBlanc Cate (Author)

Book Description

Ray the magician and his bunny assistant are best friends who work together all day, performing their act in front of admiring crowds. Every night Ray and Bunny sit down together at their little table in their apartment and have dinner. One day, while the two friends are out performing, they become separated. Suddenly, Bunny is lost and all alone. How will he and Ray ever find each other in the hustle of the big city?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. PreSchool-Grade 2—Embellished only with the gold of "glittering stars," Cate's black-and-white drawings perfectly evoke an urban setting in this tale of lost and found. Street-performing magician Ray and his loyal assistant, a white rabbit, enjoy apartment life and working together. A mid-performance mishap with a juggler leads to a pug chasing Bunny into unknown parts of the city. Love of popcorn and a trail of familiar golden stars lead him to a touching reunion with his partner at the subway station. Cate's succinct text has a storyteller's style, and her elegant drawings have a New Yorker cartoon feel. The sole glitch hinges on the convenient appearance of stars in a distant alley. Readers may be expected to believe magic put them there, but neither text nor illustrations give clues for practical young readers. Nevertheless, this gracefully lean tale will please more than city dwellers.—Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Annette LeBlanc Cate came up with the idea for The Magic Rabbit at art school many years ago. She says, "I was sitting on the floor, trying to think of a story to illustrate. My friend was sitting up on the table with her feet dangling in front of me, and her boots had all sorts of interesting buckles on them. I thought, 'What if I were a little animal here, looking up at these shoes?' And the whole idea came just at that moment - that a magician's rabbit was lost in the big city." Annette lives in Massachusetts, USA with her husband and two sons.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Walker Childrens Hardbacks (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844282902
• ISBN-13: 978-1844282906
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,084,997 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars PRESTO! A PLEASING STORY FOR YOUNG READERS., September 9, 2007

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Magic Rabbit (Hardcover)

Young readers (and adults, too) enjoy stories about friendship. Toss in a little magic, and it's sure to please. Such is the case with Annette LeBlanc Cate's touching story about two best friends, Ray and Bunny.

Not only are they best pals who live together and do everything together, but they're business partners. Ray is a magician and, of course, Bunny pops out of his hat.

All goes well until the day there is a ruckus on a crowded sidewalk, Bunny is frightened and runs off. Being lost in a big city is hard on anyone but it's especially difficult for a small white rabbit.

How the devoted duo are reunited is the crux of the story.

Illustrations are in black and white save for gold stars rather than the full-color full-page paintings that are so often the mark of a young readers' book. I found Cate's choice to be very effective.

Enjoy!

- Gail Cooke

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly Magical!, July 11, 2011

By 

Mullican the Magician - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Magic Rabbit (Hardcover)

I am a magician and do library summer reading program magic shows which encourage the kids to read and visit the library. Of course, as a magician, I do a trick or two that are 'bunny related'. I also display a number of books that go along with the tricks. I introduce The Magic Rabbit book prior to a 'magic rabbit' trick and tell the kids the wonderful story line. It always gets a great response. The Magic Rabbit can usually be found in their library and is checked out often. I bought mine from Amazon and highly recommed it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet story with amazing illustrations, May 29, 2011

By 

G. Richter (Lewisville, NC United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Magic Rabbit (Hardcover)

This is probably my favorite children's book. I bought it a while ago for myself (I collect children's books), and have since given it to countless friends with children. It's a really cute, sweet story about a magician and his rabbit (spoiler alert: they lose each other, and luckily reunite in the end) but I think my favorite part of the story is the illustrations - they are AMAZING! The whole book is done in black white and yellow sparkles. It's absolutely beautiful.