Rabbits Since Peter Rabbit

Since the publication of The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1902, authors and illustrators have been influenced or inspired by Beatrix Potter in various ways. Maurice Sendak, for example, well known for his admiration of Potter’s ‘beauty’, ‘poetry’, and ‘aliveness’, used some of her sketches as inspiration for The Big Green Book. However, many departed from Beatrix Potter both in style and content. The following items from the Gildersleeve Collection of Children's Literature at Connecticut College highlight the popularity and diversity of rabbits in children’s literature.