Toco and the Rabbit Jack is a heart-rending tale of despair and hope. Toco, the thirteen year-old heroine of the story suffers from an auto-immune disease that has kept her hospitalized for over two years and now she is dying. Her father, who loves his daughter more than anything on earth, can't stand to see his daughter suffer as she does and one day in the slim hope it may make her time left a bit happier, buys Toco a stuffed rabbit named Jack.
One night the spirit of Toco's mother, who died years before, visits her sleeping daughter who is not aware of her mother's presence and tells Jack that God will allow Toco a full normal day – a day when Toco is as healthy as any thirteen year-old girl. It is how Toco deals with her last 24 hours that will decide if she gets to go to heaven and be with her mother or not. It is up to Jack to help guide her during her one day of health and her mother gives Jack the ability to talk so that Toco alone can hear him. So begins Jack and Toco's 24-hour adventure as they are pursued by two demented nurses and others . Realizing they are now in real danger, they are on the run.
Masahiro Hara was born in a small seaport town in Japan, the second son of a stonemason and a beautician. Since childhood, he has been influenced by Ray Harryhausen's films and Ray Bradbury's fiction.
He graduated from San Francisco Art Institute Faculty of Filmmaking. After working for a Japanese movie studio in Los Angeles for five years, he moved to Tokyo. He has wanted to tell Toco's tale for some time and now it has been written for children and adults of all ages.
"Toco and the Rabbit Jack makes you believe in the miracle of love, all over again."
- Dick Duane
"The reader can't resist Jack's charm. It's easy to see why Toco loves him."
- Robert Thixton
"A lovingly crafted fantasy tale . Toco's poignant story of her life of illness, love and redemption, captivated me."
- Peter Jones