DRAPER — "Jesus Loves the Easter Bunny" is a story written by Valerie Land Gaster from Scottsdale, Ariz., who was inspired when she read a letter in the "Arizona Republic" newspaper from a frustrated mother whose children were more excited about the Easter Bunny bringing candy than about the real meaning of Easter. "I thought it would be interesting to write a children’s book that showed the Easter Bunny as being a messenger of Jesus, pointing to Him as our Savior, and not just a fun way to get candy. From that, and in chatting with my grandchildren, the ideas just fell into place. The childlike part of the bunny came from the fun antics of my precious grandson, who was 3 years old," Gaster said. The story is about a mischievous bunny who witnessed Jesus’ persecution and resurrection. Frightened by the event and sad for the stranger who was so badly mistreated, the bunny stayed close but out of sight of the soldiers who guarded Jesus’ tomb. After crying for many hours, the bunny fell asleep. In the morning, he was awakened by the man from the cross who was smiling and comforting him. In celebration of this great man who came back to life, the bunny decided to leave candy eggs at the homes of all the little children to remind them of the new life that Jesus’ resurrection has given. The author’s niece, Samantha Howa, illustrated the book. Samantha attends fifth grade at Saint John the Baptist Elementary School in Draper, Utah and read the book to the other fifth-grade students during the Easter season, proudly displaying her artwork. "It took me about six months to draw all of my pages," she said. "My favorite picture is the bunny giving Easter eggs to all the children. The hardest picture to draw was of the bunny looking up at the crowd surrounding Jesus." Samantha began drawing people, flowers, and cartoon faces when she was very little, she said. "It’s a gift from God." The book was published by Author House publishers on March 30, 2011.
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