Robert Lawson’s Rabbit Hill (1944) is a children’s animal fantasy novel that won the 1945 Newbery Medal. The story is set on a rural Connecticut hill where a community of animals responds to the anticipated arrival of new human inhabitants. After years of neglect and scarcity under previous tenants, the animals learn that “new Folks” are moving into the large house on the Hill, leading to speculation about whether they will be “planting Folks” who cultivate the land and restore food supplies. The novel explores themes of A Harmonious Coexistence Between Humans and Nature, The Role of Hope and Trust in Overcoming Fear, and Community Stability Through Adaptation to Change.

Published during World War II, the novel’s focus on food scarcity, gardening, and shared resources reflects concerns on the American home front, particularly the emphasis on Victory Gardens. The setting was directly inspired by the author’s own home in Westport, Connecticut, which he and his wife named “Rabbit Hill.” Lawson, an accomplished artist, wrote and illustrated the book, drawing on his personal observations of the local wildlife. He holds the distinction of being the first person to win both the Newbery Medal and the Caldecott Medal, which he received in 1941 for his book They Were Strong and Good. Lawson revisited the characters and setting of Rabbit Hill in a 1954 sequel titled The Tough Winter.

This guide refers to the 2007 Puffin Modern Classics edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of animal cruelty and death.

Plot Summary

The animals of Rabbit Hill, a rural Connecticut community of rabbits, woodchucks, foxes, deer, fieldmice, and other creatures, live in anxious expectation when word spreads that new people are moving into the “Big House,” a large home that has stood dark and neglected for years. Little Georgie, a young rabbit, rushes into his family’s burrow to announce the news to his parents. Mother Rabbit, a chronic worrier, frets that the newcomers may not be “planting Folks,” meaning people who cultivate the land and restore the gardens that the animals depend on for food. For three years, the Hill has had no proper garden, and the animals have endured harsh winters with almost nothing to eat. Father Rabbit, a courtly Southern gentleman originally from the Kentucky Bluegrass region, urges optimism and takes an evening stroll to gather information.

Father finds the Hill’s residents talking excitedly about the news. Porkey the Woodchuck, thin and hungry after a lean winter, reports that a real-estate agent, a carpenter, a mason named Louie Kernstawk, and a plowing man named Tim McGrath have all visited the property and taken measurements, which suggests that planting Folks may be arriving. Willie Fieldmouse excitedly tells his friend the Mole about the news, hoping for tulip bulbs and seeds again. The Mole, who is blind, depends on Willie as his guide, always relying on him to describe what is happening above ground. Phewie the Skunk cares only about the quality of garbage that the new Folks will produce, while the Red Buck craves fresh vegetables. The news spreads across the Hill as the animals repeat it to one another.

Back in the burrow, Mother imagines every danger: dogs, cats, traps, and poisons. Father methodically addresses each fear and then raises the matter of Uncle Analdas, Mother’s elderly uncle who has been living alone up Danbury way since his daughter Mildred married and moved. Father argues that Uncle Analdas should visit: He is lonely, food in Danbury is scarce, and his long experience with humans will prove invaluable. Father assigns Georgie the errand of fetching him.

At dawn, Father accompanies Georgie to the Twin Bridges, quizzing him on safety rules and drilling him on evasive maneuvers. Georgie travels skillfully and outwits the Police Dog at Norfield Church corner, but he grows bored on the open High Ridge and begins composing a simple song: “New Folks coming, oh my!” (45). His preoccupation makes him careless, and the Old Hound from a nearby farmhouse surprises him at close range. Georgie runs with all his might and realizes that he has been driven toward Deadman’s Brook, a broad creek that loops around him. With no alternative, he makes a tremendous leap of about 18 feet, clears the water, and lands safely. No other rabbit is known to have made such a jump.

Georgie reaches Uncle Analdas’s bachelor burrow, which is filthy and stocked with nothing but a single dried-up turnip for supper. He reads Mother’s letter aloud since Uncle Analdas claims to have misplaced his spectacles and asks Georgie to read it for him. Uncle Analdas agrees to come, drawn by the prospect of better food and company. On the walk home, the old rabbit reflects on the cyclical nature of history along their road, recalling earlier periods of settlement, war, and change before new people arrived again. He explains that times change and that new Folks always arrive in the end, which is why Georgie’s song seems fitting to him.

Back on the Hill, bright new shingles gleam on the Big House roof, and the air smells of fresh paint. As Georgie tries to sing his song, Father silences him so that he can listen. All over the Hill, the animals are already singing the song, and it spreads even to the humans, with Tim McGrath singing it while fixing his tractor and Louie Kernstawk humming it while loading his truck.

The vegetable garden is plowed to double its former size, with no fence. Father presses Porkey to relocate from his burrow beside the Big House, warning that dogs would make the spot perilous, but Porkey refuses to move. On the new Folks’ moving day, the animals hide in thickets to watch the vans unload. Father notes fine old mahogany furniture and takes it as a sign that the new occupants are likely to be careful and responsible. Tim and Louie note the enormous number of books, and Tim expresses suspicion that too much reading makes people eccentric. The Folks arrive in an old car. The Man smokes a pipe, which Uncle Analdas approves because the smell gives early notice of his presence. The Lady opens a basket, and an enormous striped, gray cat named Mr. Muldoon emerges. The fieldmice panic, and Mother nearly faints, while Uncle Analdas examines the cat’s stiff movement and worn teeth and concludes that he’s old and unlikely to hunt. No traps, weapons, or dogs are unloaded.

During the days that follow, the new Folks behave in ways that show consideration for the animals. Father tests the Folks’ manners by crossing in front of their car, and the Man brings the car to a full stop while both he and the Lady speak to Father in a friendly manner. The Man erects a sign reading, “Please—drive—carefully—on—account—of—Small—Animals” (78). The Gray Fox reports that upon encountering the Man, the Man greeted him calmly and then returned to reading. When workers propose shooting or trapping animals, the Man and Lady firmly refuse. The Lady says that they like the animals, and the Man says that there will be enough for all, which is why the garden has been made so large.

Willie, who spies from the windowsill each evening, nearly drowns one night when he leaps onto the rotted lid of a rainwater barrel and plunges into icy water. The Folks rescue him and nurse him overnight by the hearth. The Mole, believing that Willie has been lost, tears the entire front lawn into a network of tunnels in distress. In the morning, the Folks open the door, and Willie escapes through the mole runs, reuniting with his friend underground.

On Dividing Night, a traditional May 26 gathering, every animal meets at the garden to allocate the bounty. Father’s closing speech outlines the rules: Each family’s allotment is exclusive, encroachment risks banishment, and nothing may be touched until Midsummer’s Eve so that the crops can grow. That night, the sound of car brakes is heard from the Black Road, where Georgie had been sent on an errand. Mother gasps his name and collapses. The Man wraps a small, limp form in his coat and carries the bundle up the driveway. Grief spreads across the Hill, and the animals don’t know whether Georgie is alive.

Then, Willie spots Georgie lying in the Lady’s lap through the window. Georgie’s hind legs are bound with small sticks and bandages, and he appears to be resting quietly. Joy spreads across the Hill, though no further glimpse is possible in the weeks that follow. Uncle Analdas forms a suspicious theory, claiming that the Folks are keeping Georgie and will harm him if the animals take food from the garden. After a bitter quarrel with Father, Uncle Analdas moves in with Porkey and encourages resistance among the animals. When Louie Kernstawk begins building a new structure near the garden, Uncle Analdas declares it a dungeon. Later, when a large packing case arrives and is assembled under a canvas covering, he declares it gallows.

At dusk on Midsummer’s Eve, the animals gather at a small, circular lawn under a pine tree, where the Folks sit silently beside the covered form. Uncle Analdas stumbles into the open, shouting that Georgie must not be harmed. Then, Georgie’s voice is heard from the Lady’s lap. He jumps down and moves across the lawn, showing that he has recovered, and he plays with Mr. Muldoon. The Man removes the tarpaulin, revealing a stone statue of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. Willie describes it for the blind Mole: a robed figure with a kind, sad face, hands extended in blessing, and water dropping into a clear pool. Carved on the pool’s broad rim are the words “There—is—enough—for—all” (123). The ledge is spread with a feast for every animal on the Hill.

After the feast, the Red Buck leads a solemn procession around the garden and declares it forbidden ground, saying that the animals won’t take from it after accepting the food provided by the Folks. The Mole volunteers to patrol for cutworms, destructive larvae that follow no rules. Uncle Analdas sheepishly asks to return to the guest room in the Rabbit burrow, and Mother warmly welcomes him back. Throughout the summer, the Saint’s ledge is spread with food each evening and found clean each morning. The animals gather and store food for winter, and life on the Hill improves. Tim McGrath notices that the Folks’ unfenced garden remains untouched while his own protected plot is damaged, and he calls it “Beginner’s Luck.”