Lawson has been praised for his ability to capture simple American virtues in his stories. He achieves this by making each animal a distinct and memorable character. Lawson's language so distinguishes and defines his characters that they become a delight to the reader.

Father Rabbit, with his purple passages of Southern eloquence—"This news of Georgie's may promise the approach of a more felicitous and bountiful era"— presents the image of the aristocrat, which contrasts neatly with his daring decisions to lead dogs on a chase or to take them off the trail of Red Buck. And Porkey, the eccentric woodchuck, speaks in broken sentences and tears at the grass as he stands his ground to defend his burrow. Perhaps most distinctive of all is Uncle Analdas, the doomsayer of the Hill, who rouses the animals to rebellion when Little Georgie is taken by...