Sato The Rabbit is divided into seven tales and almost feels like an introduction to short stories for young readers. This is the first book in a trilogy, introducing us to a young boy named Haneru Sato, who becomes a rabbit and finds a dreamy world filled with extraordinary possibilities. Originally published in Japan, Sato The Rabbit is being published in English for the first time, translated by Michael Blaskowsky. Sato The Rabbit by Yuki Ainoya is a whimsical picture book packed with imagination, making it a fabulous addition to every little one’s library. I think the illustrations will lead to some fun conversations with young children. There is just as much story in the illustrations as there is in the text, so readers will want to take their time and really absorb this story slowly. The illustrations provided by Yuki Ainoya are beautiful, with soft pastel colors creating a very soothing and peaceful feel. This book is very creative, but that is exactly what I loved about it. This opened up to a beautiful world of pinks and white, just like the sky. One puddle really caught his attention and he reached down and opened it up-just like you would a manhole in the road.

He could see the pink sky and the white clouds reflected in the water. One part I really liked was when Sato was peering into large puddles on the ground after a rainfall. For example, white laundry hanging on the clothesline against a backdrop of long green grass eventually changes from billowing laundry to clouds floating in the sky, as the grass color changes from green to sky blue. It is fun to see how one scene morphs into another and creates special adventures for this little rabbit. Each story features a little boy named Sato, who is now a rabbit, and his adventures in nature. There are seven little stories in this book entitled “A Tiny Pond”, “A Sea of Grass”, “A Night of Stars”, “Watermelon”, “A Window to the Sky”, “Walnuts”, and “Forest Ice”. Then I realized that there are aspects of it that remind me a lot of Goodnight Moon, and then I realized young kids will enjoy it very much. It is very imaginative and creative, but I was concerned some of it might get lost on young children.

To be honest, it took me a while to warm up to this book.

Sato the Rabbit by Yuki Ainoya