The Tortoise and the Hare a personalized book with your child as the hero

One bright morning in a green meadow, a hare stretched his long legs and looked around for someone to impress. The grass was thick with clover, the bees were humming, and a child was sitting among the flowers, watching a small tortoise make his way along the path.

"Look at him," said the hare, with a laugh. "He has been crossing that patch of grass since breakfast. I could run to the hills and back before he reached the old fence post."

The child frowned a little. "That is not very kind," they said.

The tortoise only lifted his head and blinked slowly. "I may be slow," he said in his quiet voice, "but I always get where I am going. I would be happy to race you."

The hare laughed so hard that he had to hold his sides. "A race! Me against you? Very well. I will show the whole meadow how fast a hare can run."

The child stood up. "If you are going to race, you should do it properly," they said. They found some plain flags, each one only a bright square of cloth on a stick. One went into the ground at the start line. Then the child walked all the way along the winding track, past the stream and the low stones, and tied a ribbon between two poles at the far end for the finish.

When everything was ready, the hare bounced on his toes and the tortoise set his feet carefully. The child raised a flag high above their head. "Ready," they called. "Steady. Go!"

The hare shot away like a spring let loose. Dust puffed up behind him, and in a moment he was a brown blur far down the track. The tortoise lifted one foot, set it down, lifted the next, and took his first determined steps.

The child walked beside him. "You are doing well," they said. "Just keep going."

"I intend to," said the tortoise, and he kept going.

Far ahead, the hare skidded to a stop. He looked back and could not even see the tortoise. "Goodness, he is so far behind," he chuckled. "There is a lovely shady tree right here. I shall rest a moment and still win with plenty of time to spare." He curled up in the cool grass, closed his eyes, and soon his ears drooped and he was fast asleep.

The tortoise did not stop. He walked through the wildflowers and between the low, mossy stones. The sun climbed higher, and the track felt long, but he kept his eyes on the ribbon far ahead and did not hurry or dawdle. Sometimes he paused to breathe, and the child gave him a cheerful word, and he walked on again.

At last the child ran ahead to the finish and waited between the two poles, holding the ribbon steady. Along the track a small, determined shape came closer and closer, still walking steadily, one step after another.

Just then the hare woke up. He sat up with a start and saw that the shadows had grown long. He looked down the track and gasped. Far away, the tortoise was almost at the ribbon.

The hare ran faster than he had ever run before. His legs flew over the grass and the dust rose in a cloud behind him. But it was too late. The tortoise stretched out his nose, touched the ribbon, and it fluttered down to the grass.

"I did it," the tortoise said softly, and the child cheered and clapped.

The hare arrived, panting, and stopped. For a while he said nothing. Then he lowered his long ears. "I was proud and silly," he said. "I laughed at you, and I stopped when I should have kept going. You ran a better race than I did. I am sorry."

"Thank you," said the tortoise kindly. "I accept."

The child smiled. "Congratulations," they said to the tortoise, and then, to the hare, "and well run to you, too."

So the three of them sat down in the clover, shared a few sweet berries, and watched the sun set over the meadow. And from that day on, the hare never boasted about his speed. He remembered that steady steps, patience and a kind heart can carry you a very long way.