"One spring day, a brash and speedy hare challenged a slow and patient tortoise to a race. The hare stopped to nap. The tortoise won and became a legend."
Little Digital
presents
The Unequivocal, Complete, and Entirely True Story of
"The Tortoise
and the Hare,"
by Frances P. Hare
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Copyright ©
Little Digital LLC.
All rights reserved.
Little Digital LLC.
All rights reserved.
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You may think you know the story.
You don’t.
You really think Hare, the fastest creature in the whole forest, lost a career-defining race because of a quick siesta?
Horseradish.
I’m here to set the record straight.
How I,
Frances P. Hare,
(bet you didn’t know I was a girl!)
(bet you didn’t know I was a girl!)
a humble, patient, visually stunning hare
actually won
that day.
I've always been described as having a
"competitive spirit."
Which isn't true.
I'm not
competitive.
I just love to
win.
Which isn't true.
I'm not
competitive.
I just love to
win.
And win I did.
The jewel in my crown?
Fastest in the Meadow.
I'm so
fast,
I can run between raindrops,
So
fast,
I can watch a butterfly blink.
So
fast,
I can tell you what song the bees are humming.
(Spoiler Alert:
It's Rimsky-Korsakov!)
(Spoiler Alert:
It's Rimsky-Korsakov!)
Yep, it’s good to be me.
At least it
was.
Until the day
she
moved to my meadow.
Elanora J. Tortoise.
She was
funny.
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She could do
somersaults.
She could count to
117.
Everyone
loved
Elanora.
Only I saw her for what she was:
slow
as
frozen
molasses.
One afternoon by the watercress pond, I made my move.
"Hey,
slowpoke!"
I bellowed.
"I'll race you to the end of the forest.
"I'll race you to the end of the forest.
First one to cross the daisies is the
fastest in the meadow."
To everyone's
shock,
she agreed.
I got to training:
walking
fast,
eating
fast,
even falling
fast
asleep!
Race day
arrived.
Elanora greeted her adoring fans.
I stood
alone.
I didn't need friends.
Victory
was my bestie!
Glory
was my chum!
I
shot off
like a bolt of brownish lightning.
I
sprinted
around rocks.
I
barreled
between bushes.
I
dashed
through trees!
Was I
faster
than
fast?
Yes!
Was I paying attention?
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Not really.
Was I running in circles?
Maybe!
It didn’t matter.
When I stopped to catch my breath, I was
alone.
The sun started to set.
Then, I spotted something on a branch ahead.
Elanora’s baseball cap.
She had passed me!
Moments like these separate the
hares
from the
bunny rabbits.
Where many would quit, I kept going.
Then, things got
darker
and
scarier.
Not scary for me. I mean scary for you guys.
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I'm not afraid of the dark.
I just find it kinda
spooky.
And
lonely.
And
cold.
And
cold.
AHHHHH!
Once I stopped screaming,
(which was
way
before Elanora,)
I asked,
"You get scared of the forest,
Green Bean?"
“In your dreams,
Mitten Fingers."
Just then, a cold wind blew past us.
Elanora shivered.
“I memorized every
rock
and
root
in this forest,” she said.
“But I can’t find my way in the dark.”
"I was going so fast I didn't exactly
pay attention
to where I was going," I admitted.
“Now I'm lost too.”
Thanks to her
ingenuity
and my
hopping skills,
we found shelter as night fell.
"This is the
nicest shell
I’ve ever been in," I said, sipping my tea.
"Most tortoises go for
sturdy.
I go for
cozy.
"You know, in case I have guests.”
I
never
had guests in my burrow.
Unless you count my glorious trophies.
Turns out we had quite a bit in common.
We both had
15
siblings.
We both had a taste for
butter lettuce.
We both wanted to be the
best
at
everything.
The next morning, the race was back on.
But something was . . . .
different.
Sure, I might not
"win"
everything anymore,
But
winning
isn't
everything.
THE END
about the author
Josh Banday is an author from Los Angeles with an overly-vivid imagination and a family who is kind enough to indulge him.
With a background as a former educator for middle and high school, Josh found a love for engaging the imagination of all ages, and now shares his love for storytelling with children across the digital world.
In addition to his writing (see Josh's most recent title, Rain Rain), Josh is also an accomplished actor, known for his roles on ABC's Not Dead Yet and Amazon's Upload.
Josh Banday lives in California with his family, where he continues to weave magical stories that inspire and delight readers of all ages.
With a background as a former educator for middle and high school, Josh found a love for engaging the imagination of all ages, and now shares his love for storytelling with children across the digital world.
In addition to his writing (see Josh's most recent title, Rain Rain), Josh is also an accomplished actor, known for his roles on ABC's Not Dead Yet and Amazon's Upload.
Josh Banday lives in California with his family, where he continues to weave magical stories that inspire and delight readers of all ages.
about the illustrator
Julie Van Grol is an illustrator and motion designer based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
She loves to create lively, colorful graphics for both personal and collaborative projects, always looking for a fun way to visually problem-solve and tell playful stories. When she’s not in the studio, Julie can usually be found on a walk along the Mississippi River or poring over a book or sketchbook.
She loves to create lively, colorful graphics for both personal and collaborative projects, always looking for a fun way to visually problem-solve and tell playful stories. When she’s not in the studio, Julie can usually be found on a walk along the Mississippi River or poring over a book or sketchbook.
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