Another dark children’s book comes from the author and illustrator duo Wilkie J. Martin and Tanja Russita, this time about The Lazy Rabbit. It’s one of those stories you’ll definitely want to make sure you’re reading to older children–especially with the way the dark moment was illustrated–but one that, ultimately, has a pretty important message to send. Granted, most people today will never find themselves in that exact situation but the fact of the matter is that the truth that laziness is very likely to result in bad things happening to you, or even others.

In this case, the rabbit himself, I think is the true villain of the story. Though some may argue it would be the fox, though really the fox is only acting in his own nature. Ultimately, it is the rabbit whose actions truly result in the mildly graphic and obviously disturbing end and message. Laziness does not pay off and while, in this case, it did not hurt those around the rabbit, the truth is that it very well may have. This book relies heavily on that of the Grimm fairytales and is equally dark in its nature.

The watercolor illustrations are adorable and scary all at once, really bringing readers into experiencing the dire and tragic circumstances of the tale. I would say, unquestionably, that this is not a book to read to any young children who scare easily and rather is something more suited for older kids who understand a bit more about the world. As an educator, this would not be the kind of book I would read to someone else’s kids, however.

I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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