Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit.

Peter Rabbit by Beatrix potter, 1902

I had bought some CDs of the Peter Rabbit tales being red aloud and my child liked them

so much, I went and bought a couple of the books. A family favourite is The Tale of Tom Kitten and I like The Tale of Peter Rabbit. I love the simplicity of these stories. The little tidbits that draw the

pictures with the language as you go through. For instance, we're told Peter's father is caught by Mr McGregor and put in a pie by Mrs McGregor ... no need to say he was killed, but

we're told of his fate. Interestingly, my child learnt the stories without the pictures to go with them, just the CD. Potter was exquisite with both l

anguage and illustrations.

Potter was an interesting woman, I think. Here's some info

on her:

She developed a love of the natural world which she closely observed and painted

from an early age. Her parents were artistic and interested in nature and the out of doors. W

hile Beatrix was happily never sent off to boarding school, her education in languages,

literature, science and history was broad and she was an eager student. Although she was provided with private art lessons, Beatrix preferred to develop her own style, particularly favoring watercolor. In her twenties, she concentrated on the study of fungi mycology, of ancient artifacts archeology, and of geology, and achieved a measure of respect from the scientific establishment for her reproduction of fungi spores and her scientific illustrations. In her thirties, Potter published the highly successful children’s book The Tale of Peter Rabbit publishing it privately, and then in 1902 as a small, three-color illustrated book with Frederick Warne & Co. Between 1902 and 1918 she published over twenty popular children’s books.

With the proceeds from the books and a small legacy from an aunt, Potter bought Hill Top Farm in Near Sawrey, a tiny village in the English Lake District near Ambleside. Over the next several decades, she purchased additional farms to preserve the unique hill country landscape. In 1913 at the age of 47 she married William Heelis, a respected local solicitor from Hawkshead. Potter became a prize-winning breeder of Herdwick sheep and a prosperous farmer keenly interested in land preservation. She continued to write and illustrate children's’ books for Warne after her marriage until the duties of land management and diminishing eyesight made it difficult to continue. Beatrix Potter published over twenty-three books; the best are those written between 1902 and 1918. Potter died on 22 December 1943 at Castle Cottage, Near Sawrey, leaving almost all of her property to National Trust. She is credited with preserving much of the land that now comprises the Lake District National Park.