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A Fox Called Herbert
Meet Herbert, the rabbit who knows he was born to be a fox. When his mommy isn't looking, he puts on pointy fox ears, makes himself a bushy tail, and asks his sister to paint him orange, just like a fox. But Mommy doesn't understand; why can't he just be a good rabbit? This delightful picture book is a true celebration of being ourselves and supporting our loved ones. Let this joyful tale inspire you to be who you are and follow your dreams.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published April 3, 2020
About the author
Margaret Sturton
6 books1 followerMargaret Sturton was born and grew up in Southampton. She has always had a strong passion for children's books. She studied Fine Art at Winchester School of Art and an MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Anglia Ruskin.
She decided to retrain as an illustrator and ‘A Fox called Herbert’ was written while she was studying at Anglia Ruskin.
Margaret now lives in Winchester with her boyfriend and cat.
She decided to retrain as an illustrator and ‘A Fox called Herbert’ was written while she was studying at Anglia Ruskin.
Margaret now lives in Winchester with her boyfriend and cat.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
June 30, 2026
A Fox Called Herbert (both penned and illustrated by Margaret Sturton and published in 2020) is basically a very basic but also a really sweet little story about identity, and with there not being any in-depth examinations presented regarding either text or images except that Sturton clearly both verbally and visually demonstrates in A Fox Called Herbert that while young Herbert is a rabbit, he actually feels like a fox, that he wants to look like a fox, that he wants to be a fox and how Herbert thus keeps trying to have this happen throughout A Fox Called Herbert (making himself some fox ears, getting his little sister to help paint him red, cutting up a red dress for a fox-like tail).
But well, this identity switching, these constant attempts by Herbert to turn vulpine are in A Fox Called Herbert shown by Margaret Sturton to be to anathema to his mother who is both annoyed at the messes her son keeps making and continually wants and asks Herbert to act like a so-called good rabbit. However, after Herbert finally in A Fox Called Herbert yells at his mother in absolute frustration that he cannot be a good rabbit since he feels like and is a fox, she is then shown via Sturton’s words and illustrations as hugging and comforting her son and saying that Herbert is her fox (a sweetly and intensely upbeat ending for A Fox Called Herbert, a bit simplistic and overly positive perhaps, with not much pain, with not all that much frustration, family friction and having to slowly come to terms and to an understanding about identity dysphoria and identity change, but that for me, Sturton’s combination of text and images in and for A Fox Called Herbert is perfect for introducing identity and issues with identity, self acceptance, feeling alienated and frustrated by and because of one’s identify for very young children gently, provided tenderly, supportingly and also never ever didactically, never pedantically).
So five stars for what Margaret Sturton thematically and contents wise presents in and with A Fox Called Herbert, but lowered to four stars since both my inner child and even more so adult I tend to think that Sturton’s artwork is rather too stylised, is too unrealistic with regard to colour and we also find how both the foxes and the rabbits in A Fox Called Herbert are depicted as not only anthropomorphic but are also (and this I always or rather usually visually despise) clad in human clothing more than a trifle aesthetically off (and that especially Herbert’s sister wearing that tutu really visually annoys). But still, Margaret Sturton’s text and pictures work really and nicely well together in A Fox Called Herbert, that I do recommend A Fox Called Herbert (and that young children, that the intended audience would and should probably find both story and artwork enchanting, delightful and appealing).
But well, this identity switching, these constant attempts by Herbert to turn vulpine are in A Fox Called Herbert shown by Margaret Sturton to be to anathema to his mother who is both annoyed at the messes her son keeps making and continually wants and asks Herbert to act like a so-called good rabbit. However, after Herbert finally in A Fox Called Herbert yells at his mother in absolute frustration that he cannot be a good rabbit since he feels like and is a fox, she is then shown via Sturton’s words and illustrations as hugging and comforting her son and saying that Herbert is her fox (a sweetly and intensely upbeat ending for A Fox Called Herbert, a bit simplistic and overly positive perhaps, with not much pain, with not all that much frustration, family friction and having to slowly come to terms and to an understanding about identity dysphoria and identity change, but that for me, Sturton’s combination of text and images in and for A Fox Called Herbert is perfect for introducing identity and issues with identity, self acceptance, feeling alienated and frustrated by and because of one’s identify for very young children gently, provided tenderly, supportingly and also never ever didactically, never pedantically).
So five stars for what Margaret Sturton thematically and contents wise presents in and with A Fox Called Herbert, but lowered to four stars since both my inner child and even more so adult I tend to think that Sturton’s artwork is rather too stylised, is too unrealistic with regard to colour and we also find how both the foxes and the rabbits in A Fox Called Herbert are depicted as not only anthropomorphic but are also (and this I always or rather usually visually despise) clad in human clothing more than a trifle aesthetically off (and that especially Herbert’s sister wearing that tutu really visually annoys). But still, Margaret Sturton’s text and pictures work really and nicely well together in A Fox Called Herbert, that I do recommend A Fox Called Herbert (and that young children, that the intended audience would and should probably find both story and artwork enchanting, delightful and appealing).
December 29, 2020
Book Reviewed on www.whisperingstories.com
Herbert the rabbit wanted to be a fox. He tried pushing his ears down and adding little ears on top of his head. He tried painting himself and he tried wearing a bushy tail. His mum couldn’t understand why Herbert was being a pain and going to all the effort to look like a fox when he is a rabbit.
A Fox Called Herbert is a young children’s book about identity and not feeling like you belong in the body you have been given and wanting to be something different. In Herbert’s case, he didn’t want to be a rabbit he wanted to be a fox.
Herbert is brave to stand up for what he believes in and I hope that this gives children an insight into the modern world where some people don’t feel comfortable in the body they have been given or being identified in a certain way and that there is nothing wrong with that. By educating children whilst they are little we will hopefully improve the world and the way some people in society are treated.
Although I must say as a parent I’m not so sure I’d have let Herbert get away with cutting up one of my dresses so easily!
This is a lovely book that is beautifully illustrated with full-page drawings and I can see it leading to further conversations about the subject.
Herbert the rabbit wanted to be a fox. He tried pushing his ears down and adding little ears on top of his head. He tried painting himself and he tried wearing a bushy tail. His mum couldn’t understand why Herbert was being a pain and going to all the effort to look like a fox when he is a rabbit.
A Fox Called Herbert is a young children’s book about identity and not feeling like you belong in the body you have been given and wanting to be something different. In Herbert’s case, he didn’t want to be a rabbit he wanted to be a fox.
Herbert is brave to stand up for what he believes in and I hope that this gives children an insight into the modern world where some people don’t feel comfortable in the body they have been given or being identified in a certain way and that there is nothing wrong with that. By educating children whilst they are little we will hopefully improve the world and the way some people in society are treated.
Although I must say as a parent I’m not so sure I’d have let Herbert get away with cutting up one of my dresses so easily!
This is a lovely book that is beautifully illustrated with full-page drawings and I can see it leading to further conversations about the subject.
July 1, 2026
Hoopla
It's not about foxes and rabbits. It's about people who assumed to be very different from one another, yet some individuals feel more like they fit in with the 'other' than with their own family. The metaphor can apply to lots of different circumstances - think past what your first assumption might be. To jog your imagination, think of West Side Story.
It's not about foxes and rabbits. It's about people who assumed to be very different from one another, yet some individuals feel more like they fit in with the 'other' than with their own family. The metaphor can apply to lots of different circumstances - think past what your first assumption might be. To jog your imagination, think of West Side Story.
November 28, 2021
This is a lovely picture book with some great illustrations. Herbert likes foxes, so much so that he tries to dress up as one. First he tries to put on pointed ears, but his mum tells him that’s not how rabbits dress and he should be a good rabbit. Later Herbert tries to paint himself red, and has fun with his sister, painted red as a fox, but his mum soon sees what Herbert has done and tells him off, saying that he should be a good rabbit. But Herbert doesn’t want to be a rabbit, and he’ll do anything to show that he isn’t one. The book is around A4ish in size and is a harback filled with thick matt pages of colourful illustrations and text.
This is an interesting story which seems fun at first but has an obviously deeper message inside. Herbert loves to dress up as a fox and play with the other foxes in the neighbourhood. But every time he tries to look and act like a fox, his mum gets angry at him and tells him to be a good rabbit. One day she has enough of Herbert’s antics and gets very angry asking him why he won’t just be a good rabbit like she’s asked. Herbert ends up yelling back to her, letting her know the reason. The story is quite simple and clearly shows that Herbert feels that he’s different to the body he is in and it ends in a good way with Herbert being accepted for who he really feels he is inside.
The story at first seems a simple and funny one with Herbert dressing up and using different props to look like a fox, and I enjoyed how creative, if a bit naughty, Herbert got at becoming a fox. But unlike the majority of the tale, the ending is short and quite abrupt and to be honest I thought a little bit too simple or obvious for what it was trying to show. While I like the idea of this book showing a parent accepting their child and showing kids that it’s okay to be who you really are inside, and be accepted for it, the book itself feels like it’s missing something more at the end. It feels like more could have been said, more could have happened and it didn’t have to end so abruptly or end so simply, although I do like the last page showing everyone happy.
The illustrations are really sweet. I love all the fun details in the background, especially when Herbert is in the park, the other animal kids in the background and all the different things to spot happening on the page. Herbert and his family look fun too and I love how expressive Herbert looks and how simple and effective all the pictures are at showing what is happening.
Overall this is a good picture book with a great message of acceptance and being comfortable with who you are. I can’t help but feel though, that the message, with that abrupt ending, is almost too obvious and this book became less about the fun story of Herbert dressing up and doing some silly things, and more about making sure that children and adults understood the message about Herbert being a fox and not a rabbit and the importance of that acceptance of those who feel like they are different than the body they are in. And while that subject is a good one for discussion, especially for children who may feel uncomfortable in their own bodies, I can’t help but feel that some books I’ve read about this subject have managed to do this a little better and with more subtlety and a less abrupt ending. But it is still a lovely and funny story, especially at the start and I won’t spoil the very funny, and naughty, things that Herbert does to make himself into a fox!
-Thanks to Andersen Press for a free copy for review.
This is an interesting story which seems fun at first but has an obviously deeper message inside. Herbert loves to dress up as a fox and play with the other foxes in the neighbourhood. But every time he tries to look and act like a fox, his mum gets angry at him and tells him to be a good rabbit. One day she has enough of Herbert’s antics and gets very angry asking him why he won’t just be a good rabbit like she’s asked. Herbert ends up yelling back to her, letting her know the reason. The story is quite simple and clearly shows that Herbert feels that he’s different to the body he is in and it ends in a good way with Herbert being accepted for who he really feels he is inside.
The story at first seems a simple and funny one with Herbert dressing up and using different props to look like a fox, and I enjoyed how creative, if a bit naughty, Herbert got at becoming a fox. But unlike the majority of the tale, the ending is short and quite abrupt and to be honest I thought a little bit too simple or obvious for what it was trying to show. While I like the idea of this book showing a parent accepting their child and showing kids that it’s okay to be who you really are inside, and be accepted for it, the book itself feels like it’s missing something more at the end. It feels like more could have been said, more could have happened and it didn’t have to end so abruptly or end so simply, although I do like the last page showing everyone happy.
The illustrations are really sweet. I love all the fun details in the background, especially when Herbert is in the park, the other animal kids in the background and all the different things to spot happening on the page. Herbert and his family look fun too and I love how expressive Herbert looks and how simple and effective all the pictures are at showing what is happening.
Overall this is a good picture book with a great message of acceptance and being comfortable with who you are. I can’t help but feel though, that the message, with that abrupt ending, is almost too obvious and this book became less about the fun story of Herbert dressing up and doing some silly things, and more about making sure that children and adults understood the message about Herbert being a fox and not a rabbit and the importance of that acceptance of those who feel like they are different than the body they are in. And while that subject is a good one for discussion, especially for children who may feel uncomfortable in their own bodies, I can’t help but feel that some books I’ve read about this subject have managed to do this a little better and with more subtlety and a less abrupt ending. But it is still a lovely and funny story, especially at the start and I won’t spoil the very funny, and naughty, things that Herbert does to make himself into a fox!
-Thanks to Andersen Press for a free copy for review.
December 10, 2020
It is so refreshing to see children’s literature beginning to express inclusivity and diversity on the scale it actually deserves.
Herbert, born a rabbit, just knows that he was meant to be a Fox. So Herbert does exactly the right thing and dons his hand-made Fox ears and embraces his desire to be a Fox. At first his mother doesn’t approve, but then she accepts that Herbert gets to decide who he wants to be.
The message is loud and clear, beautiful and undeniably undertold in children’s literature. I’m so impressed with how this has been done that I genuinely sat in silence for a few minutes after before answering any questions from small children.
I wish the story had been longer, because I think the way it has been told is so good and the illustrations so expressive (but perhaps also a little underdone) that it warranted more attention and time.
ARC provided from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.
Herbert, born a rabbit, just knows that he was meant to be a Fox. So Herbert does exactly the right thing and dons his hand-made Fox ears and embraces his desire to be a Fox. At first his mother doesn’t approve, but then she accepts that Herbert gets to decide who he wants to be.
The message is loud and clear, beautiful and undeniably undertold in children’s literature. I’m so impressed with how this has been done that I genuinely sat in silence for a few minutes after before answering any questions from small children.
I wish the story had been longer, because I think the way it has been told is so good and the illustrations so expressive (but perhaps also a little underdone) that it warranted more attention and time.
ARC provided from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.
May 27, 2021
Herbert loves watching the foxes playing outside his house. In fact, he loves them so much that he'll often dress up around the house as them, much to the amusement of his sister. But Herbert is a rabbit and certainly not a fox; such actions infuriate his mother who simply doesn't understand her son's obsession until she is made to listen.
There are sweet illustrations here from Sturton and I enjoyed the use of negative space to emphasise character and emotion. I think though, that if this is a story about identity and being born in the wrong body then the message is confusing. Herbert sees himself as a fox but is a rabbit; foxes are wholly different species and predatory to rabbits...
I have no doubt children will read into this in many ways and that's what counts!
There are sweet illustrations here from Sturton and I enjoyed the use of negative space to emphasise character and emotion. I think though, that if this is a story about identity and being born in the wrong body then the message is confusing. Herbert sees himself as a fox but is a rabbit; foxes are wholly different species and predatory to rabbits...
I have no doubt children will read into this in many ways and that's what counts!
April 26, 2020
A delightful book about identity, family, love and acceptance. A must for any home where someone is questioning their place in the world.
May 14, 2020
Save the Children is a very good cause, I think, (you cannot trust any "good cause"s these days honestly) but it's providing me with a lot of picturebook content and I thank them deeply
January 10, 2021
A story about identity, which has relevance to anybody trying, and failing, to fit into the wrong-shaped hole.
May 10, 2022
A beautiful story about understanding and love.
December 31, 2023
A lovely, illustrated book about a young rabbit who doesn’t feel comfortable in the skin he was born in.
July 1, 2026
I have to thank my friend Manybooks for bringing my attention to this award-winning fun book.
Herbert may have born into a family of rabbits, but deep down, he knows he’s really a fox. Author/illustrator Margaret Sturton has created a picture book that is sweet, but never twee, and comforting without being preachy.
Herbert may have born into a family of rabbits, but deep down, he knows he’s really a fox. Author/illustrator Margaret Sturton has created a picture book that is sweet, but never twee, and comforting without being preachy.
June 14, 2024
Themes: foxes
Ages: toddler-1st grade
Pub year: 2020
Ages: toddler-1st grade
Pub year: 2020
June 30, 2026
3.5/5
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews