The purpose here is not to translate the storybook of “The Velveteen Rabbit”. I will use scenes from the story as examples to help students be on the same page. That allows students to learn more accurate expressions for everyday Japanese conversation.
Let’s translate the following sentences into Japanese in a natural way!
Note: This is not a word-for-word translation.
Quote source: THE Velveteen Rabbit
/ On Christmas morning,
/ when he sat wedged in the top of the Boy’s stocking, with a sprig of holly between his paws,
/ the effect was charming.
/ There were other things in the stocking, nuts and oranges and a toy engine, and chocolate almonds and a clockwork mouse,
/ but the Rabbit was quite the best of all.
Formal
/ クリスマスの朝、
/ ヒイラギの小枝を両手に持ったうさぎが、その男の子の靴下の一番上にぎゅっと入れられていた様子は
/ 魅力的でした。
/ 靴下には他に、木の実、オレンジ、おもちゃのエンジン、アーモンドチョコレート、そしてぜんまい仕掛けのネズミなどが入っていましたが、
/ うさぎは一番でした。
Casual
/ クリスマスの朝、
/ ヒイラギの小枝を両手に持ったうさぎが、その男の子の靴下の一番上にぎゅっって感じで入ってたんだけど、
/ それがすっごくかわいかった。
/ 靴下には他に、木の実とかオレンジ、おもちゃのエンジン、アーモンドチョコレート、あと、ぜんまい仕掛けのネズミとかが入ってたんだけど、
/ うさぎが一番だった。
Advanced Tips
wedge (verb)
In this context, the word ‘wedge’ means the following.
to put or force something tightly into a narrow space, so that it cannot move easily
The Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries
Google Translate translates it as:
挟まれる
押し込まれる
However, these are unnatural in this context.
挟まれる doesn’t match the situation which the rabbit sits in the top of a stocking.
In the Japanese language, things never 挟まれる by something made of a soft material like a stocking.
押し込まれる can describe the similar scene as this story, but it might make a more violent impression.
Therefore, I think an onomatopoeia ぎゅっと would be better to use in order to express this cute situation.
Kotoba no Hibiki 