Miffy

Before I had a name, I was just a feeling. Imagine two long ears, perfect for listening to stories. Picture two small dots for eyes that look right at you, as if we share a secret. And a simple cross for a mouth, ready for a day of quiet adventures. I am made of just a few bold, black lines on a clean, white page. There are no shadows or fussy details, just a simple shape that feels safe and clear. My world is not complicated, and that is what makes it so wonderful. In my simple form, I hold so many stories of friendship, discovery, and the small joys of being a child. I am a little white rabbit, and my name is Miffy.

My story began on a breezy summer day in 1955. A kind artist named Dick Bruna was on holiday with his family in a Dutch seaside town called Egmond aan Zee. Every evening, he told a bedtime story to his one-year-old son, Sierk. One day, Dick saw a little white rabbit hopping around in the grassy dunes near their house. That little rabbit gave him an idea. That night, instead of just telling a story, he picked up a pencil and began to draw. With a few careful strokes, I hopped onto the page. He drew me as a simple, friendly character for his son to love. Sierk enjoyed the stories so much that Dick decided to turn them into a book. The very first book about my adventures was published that same year, in 1955, and a new friend for children began a journey he could never have imagined.

Dick Bruna gave me a world full of bright, happy colors that he chose very carefully. He called them the “Bruna colors.” There is a special, warm red, like a favorite sweater. There is a sunny, cheerful yellow, a deep and calm blue, and a fresh green, like new grass in the spring. He always used thick, steady black lines to draw me and my world. He believed these strong lines felt safe and clear to children, with no confusing, wobbly parts. One of the most important things he decided was that my eyes would always look straight out from the page. Can you guess why. He wanted it to feel like I was looking directly at you, the reader. This way, we are not just reading a story; we are sharing it together, as friends. In my home country of the Netherlands, my name is not Miffy. It is Nijntje, which is a short and sweet way of saying 'konijntje'—the Dutch word for 'little rabbit.'

From that first little book made for one boy, my stories began to travel. I hopped from the Netherlands across the sea, and soon children all over the globe were reading about my adventures. My books have been translated into more than 50 languages. Whether you are in Japan, England, or America, you can read about my day at the zoo, my birthday party, or the time I learned to ride a bicycle. My adventures are about simple, everyday things that every child can understand. I show that you do not need grand castles or magical powers to have a wonderful story. The most important things in life—like friendship, curiosity, and love—are simple and clear, just like the lines that make me. And those feelings are understood by everyone, everywhere.