Peter Rabbit's mother instructs him not to go into Mr. McGregor's garden, but Peter disobeys and sneaks in anyway. He feasts on tasty vegetables until Mr. McGregor chases him and almost catches him. Peter becomes lost in the garden and loses his shoes and coat, but eventually makes it back home. Mr. McGregor makes a little scarecrow out of Peter's shoes and coat.
A tailor is sewing a fancy cherry-colored coat and waistcoat for the town mayor. He sends his cat Simpkin out for supplies with the very last of their money, as he has no more cherry twist for the buttonholes. As he awaits his supplies, he hears a tip tap sound, and sees a bunch of little mice. When Simpkin returns, he hides the twist from his master, angry because the tailor does not give him a plump mouse for his dinner. The sad tailor goes to bed, and Simpkin hunts for the mice and fails to find any. The tailor falls ill for three days. On Christmas, Simpkin feels bad and fetches the cherry colored twist for his master. The tailor goes to his shop and finds the coat completed, save one buttonhole. There is a tiny note that says, 'NO MORE TWIST.' The tailor finished the jacket and from that day on his luck changed. With the help of the mice, he made the most beautiful coats and became a rich man.
For seven days, Squirrel Nutkin and the other little squirrels travel to Owl Island to gather nuts for the winter. The owl, Old Brown, lives on Owl Island. The other little squirrels bring offerings to Old Brown in exchange for free passage to gather nuts. But Nutkin brings nothing for Old Brown. Instead, Nutkin taunts Old Brown with riddles, sassy dancing, and even jumps right on his head. Nutkin wears out Old Brown's patience. Old Brown captures Nutkin and intends to skin him, but Nutkin escapes, breaking his tail in two in the process. To this day, if you meet Nutkin and ask him a riddle, he will only scold you with a 'Cuck-cuck-cuck-cur-r-r-cuck-k!.'
Remember in the Tale of Peter Rabbit, when Mr. McGregor uses Peter Rabbit's coat and shoes to make a little scarecrow? When Mr. and Mrs. McGregor take off in their gig, Benjamin Bunny figures it is the perfect time to take back Peter Rabbit's coat and shoes. Peter and Benjamin retrieve Peter's clothes. Peter is very nervous, but Benjamin is at ease and gathers vegetables. As they head out of the garden, they run into the cat. They end up stuck under a basket with the cat on top until old Mr. Benjamin Bunny comes along to find his son, little Benjamin. Old Mr. Bunny attacks the cat and locks it in the greenhouse. He whips his son and takes Benjamin and Peter out of the garden.
Two dolls named Lucinda and Jane live in a beautiful doll house. One morning, they go out for a drive, and two bad mice named Tom Thumb and his wife Hunca Munca sneak into the dolls' house. The mice try to eat the food in the doll house, but become enraged when they realize the food is fake. The mice break the food, try to burn things in the fake fire, throw clothes out the window, and steal anything they can fit into their mouse hole. When the dolls return, they are shocked. The two bad mice feel guilty for what they have done. Later, Tom Thumb put a sixpence in one of the dolly's stockings at Christmas to pay for what they broke and stole. Plus, Hunca Munca sneaks into the dolls' house and sweeps with a broom.
A little girl named Lucie loses her handkins and a pinny and sets out to find them. She comes to a little house inside a hill. Inside she meets a washer-woman named Mrs. Tiggy-winkle who is ironing and starching clothing. Mrs. Tiggy-winkle takes out and irons Lucie's handkins and her pinny. Lucie and Mrs. Tiggy-winkle take bundles of clothing and deliver them to various animals. When they are done delivering the laundry, Lucie realizes Mrs. Tiggy-winkle isn't a person, she's a hedgehog.
A pussy-cat named Ribby invites a little dog named Duchess for tea and promises to serve a delicious pie. Duchess accepts the invitation, but hopes the pie does not have mouse in it, for she does not like mouse. Ribby makes a mouse and bacon pie and puts it into the bottom of her two ovens. Duchess makes a veal and ham pie in a patty-pan and sneaks the pie into Ribby's top oven. When tea time comes, Duchess eats four servings of pie. Then she realizes there is no patty-pan and believes she has eaten it. When Ribby fetches the doctor, Duchess realizes her pie is still in the top oven and that she has eaten a mouse pie.
A fierce, bad rabbit scratches a nice rabbit and steals the nice rabbit's carrot. The nice rabbit hides in hole and is sad. A man with a gun shoots the bad rabbit's whiskers and tail off.
A kitten named Miss Moppet tries to catch a taunting mouse and hits her head. Miss Moppet ties up her hurt head and pretends to be ill. The mouse comes closer for a look and Miss Moppet catches him. She ties the mouse up in her duster and tosses it around. The mouse escapes through hole in the duster, climbs up on cupboard, and dances a jig.
In preparation for a tea party, Tom Kitten and his two sisters, Mittens and Moppet are groomed and dressed in fancy clothes by their mother, Mrs. Tabatha Twitchit. Mrs. Tabatha sent them into the garden to play. While playing, the kittens get their nice clothes dirty and lose them. Some puddle-ducks pick up the clothes and dress themselves, then waddle off to the pond. The ducks lose the clothes in the pond, as the buttons have come off. Mrs. Tabatha finds the kittens without their clothes, smacks them, and makes them stay upstairs while company visits. However, the rascally kittens kick up a ruckus, disturbing the visitors below.
Jemima Puddle-Duck doesn't want her eggs taken away again at the farm, so she flies into the woods in search of a place to make a nest. She meets a kind black-eared, whiskered gentleman, who takes her to his shed, which is full of feathers. When she lays her eggs, the gentleman asks her to get him some sage and onions for an omelet. As Jemima gathers the herbs and onions, collie dog Kep asks her why and Jemima tells him all about the whiskered gentleman and her nest. When Jemima returns to forest and her shed, Kep and two puppies lock her in the shed. She hears a ruckus outside and never sees the whiskered gentleman again. The puppies eat her eggs, but later she lays more and hatches four ducklings.
Mrs. Tabitha Twitchit decides to lock her children up on baking day to keep them out of mischief. Tom Kitten sneaks away, climbs up the chimney, and discovers a passage to the attic. Two hungry rats in the attic tie up the poor kitten, cover him in butter and dough in a plan to make kitten dumpling roly-poly pudding for dinner. The dog John Joiner comes to the rescue, scaring off the rats and rescuing poor Tom. When Tom grows older, his brother and sister become successful rat hunters, but poor Tom is still afraid of rats.
Mr. Benjamin Bunny and his little bunnies stuff themselves with lettuces from Mr. McGregor's rubbish heap and fell asleep. Mr. McGregor captures the little bunnies, ties them in a sack, and leaves the sack on the wall. Mrs. Thomasina Tittlemouse nibbles a hole in the sack and Mr. Benjamin Bunny pulls the babies out. Then the bunnies stuff the bag full of rotten vegetables and hide under a bush to wait and watch. Mr. McGregor brings the bag home. Mrs. McGregor opens the sack, finds rotten vegetables instead of bunnies, becomes angry, and throws the vegetables.
Poor tidy Mrs. Tittlemouse just wants a clean house. Unfortunately, her house is invaded by beetles with dirty feet, ladybugs, spiders, bees that bring in moss, a toad named Mr. Jackson, creepy-crawlies, and a butterfly. She kicks them all out, cleans her home until it is neat and clean again, and throws a party for some of her mice friends. When Mr. Jackson wants to attend the party, she won't let him inside, but passes cups of honeydew outside, which makes him happy.
Gray squirrels Timmy Tiptoes and his wife Goody store nuts for when they awaken from winter hibernation in spring. Since squirrels often forget where they bury nuts in the ground, Timmy and Goody empty bags of nuts through a small woodpecker hole high up in a hollow tree. A bird begins singing near Timmy, 'Who's been digging up my nuts?' When the other squirrels hear the song, they think Timmy has stolen their buried nuts. They grab Timmy and shove him into the small hole high up in the tree. Timmy barely fits through the hole, but eventually the squirrels shove him through, bruising his ribs badly. Timmy tumbles down and lands among the nuts he'd stored there. Down in the trunk, Timmy meets a chipmunk named Chippy Hackee who encourages Timmy to eat nuts. Timmy keeps eating nuts, growing fatter and fatter. Timmy and Chippy's wives find them, but Timmy is far too plump to get out the hole and Chippy doesn't want to go home. Timmy stays in the tree until a big wind blows off the top of the tree. Chippy stays until a hungry bear comes looking for the nuts and ends up with a bad head cold.
Fox Mr. Tod keeps many homes, and badger Tommy Brock often stays without permission in Mr. Tod's unoccupied homes. Tommy Brock steals Benjamin Bunny's babies and brings them back to one of Mr. Tod's homes. He stashes them in the cold oven for the morning's breakfast and goes to bed. Benjamin Bunny and Peter Rabbit come to rescue the baby bunnies, but cannot get inside the house. Mr. Tod comes to the house and finds Badger sleeping in his bed. Enraged, he hangs a bucket of water attached to a long rope over Tommy Brock. Mr. Tod goes outside and frees the rope, causing the bucket to come crashing down on the bed. Mr. Tod sees an unmoving lump on the bed, he rejoices because he believes Tommy Brock is dead. But Tommy Brock was awake and laughing at Mr. Tod the whole time and is now sipping tea at the kitchen table. Tommy Brock and Mr. Tod get into a brawl, smash up the house, and tumble out the door and outside. In the chaos, Benjamin Bunny saves his babies.
Pigling Bland's mother has too many piglets and decides to send all but one away. She gives Pigling Bland and his brother, Alexander, licenses and sends them to market to be hired by farmers. Alexander acts up, loses his license, and a policeman walks him back home to the farm. Pigling Bland continues to the market, becomes lost, and falls asleep in a hen house. The owner, Peter Thomas Piperson, comes and puts Pigling Bland and some hens in a hamper and takes them to back to his house. Mr. Piperson lets Pigling sleep on a rug and feeds him. Pigling finds that another small, black pig named Pig-wig lives in Mr. Piperson's house. Pigling and Pig-wig run away from Mr. Piperson, who aims to make hams and bacon out of them. A grocer stops them and demands to see their licenses. The pigs run far away and dance with joy.
Cat and dog team Ginger and Pickles run a small shop and make the mistake of giving unlimited credit to their customers. Their customers take advantage of them, making them so poor they must eat their own goods and Pickles can't afford a dog license. Eventually, they can't pay their taxes and go out of business. Ginger moves to game preserve for rabbits and Pickles becomes a game-keeper. Sally Henny Penny reopens the shop, gives no credit, and insists of being paid cash.