rabbits

Review: Bunnies on Ice by Johanna Wright

| Tasha

bunnies on ice

Bunnies on Ice by Johanna Wright

This icy read is just right for a very cold winter day, like we have been having here in Wisconsin.  One little bunny thinks that she is a champion ice-skater.  As a champion, she has to wait for conditions to be just right, even if it means waiting through spring, summer and fall!  When the waiting is finally over, she has to eat a big breakfast to prepare.  Clothing selection is also important, enough layers to be warm, but not too many.  Finally, it is time to skate her adoring fans.  She demonstrates her high level of skill, well, almost.  The day ends with hot chocolate, a warm bath and a cozy bed.  The perfect ending for a champion day.

Wright has created a cheery book about not only ice skating but the wonder of big dreams.  It is a delight to find a picture book with a young girl exhibiting such strong self-esteem with no hesitation.  Wright nicely weaves in the truth behind the little girl’s dreams.  This happens particularly when the actual skating begins and readers discover that she’s not really a champion ice skater. 

In her illustrations, Wright creates a cozy world.  There is the rabbit’s home inside a large tree that is filled with deep colors that evoke a warmth.  This contrasts nicely with the blues of the outdoors and the white of the snow.  The entire book exudes a cluttered friendliness and family-centered cheer.

Sparkling with ice and plenty of bravado, this picture book will inspire children to dream big themselves.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

Review: Too Tall Houses by Gianna Marino

| Tasha

too tall houses

Too Tall Houses by Gianna Marino

Rabbit and Owl live right next door to one another at the top of a hill in separate small houses.  Rabbit likes growing vegetables and Owl likes the view of the forest.  They were good friends.  Until one day, Rabbit’s vegetables got so tall that they blocked Owl’s view of the forest.  Rabbit refused to cut his vegetables down, so Owl built his house taller.  Then Owl’s house was blocking the sun from reaching Rabbit’s garden, so Rabbit built a taller house and put his garden on the roof.   So started the competition to have the tallest house.  And my, do the houses ever get taller and taller! 

Marino does a great job of telling a story that has the heart and soul of a classic folktale.  The friendship and competition between the two animals carries a subtle lesson that is masked effectively in humor.  She doesn’t back away from carrying the tale to its very funny extreme ending.  The story is kept simple, allowing the illustrations to carry much of the story forward.

Marino’s illustrations have the colors of fall and warmth.  From the orange branches Owl uses to create his home to the terra cotta bricks of Rabbit’s, the colors are bright and autumnal.  As the houses grow into the sky, the colors are cooler, emphasizing that they are leaving the comfort of their warm homes and creating homes simply to beat someone else. 

This is a funny, warm and memorable read that will get your audience laughing.  Perfect for reading aloud any time of year.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Viking.

Review: The Adventures of Little Nutbrown Hare by Sam McBratney

| Tasha

adventures of little nutbrown hare

The Adventures of Little Nutbrown Hare by Sam McBratney

In this follow-up to the classic Guess How Much I Love You, McBratney gives us four new stories about the beautiful relationship between Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare.  In the first story, the two wake up to discover that the Hiding Tree has fallen over during the night.  Big  immediately climbs the fallen tree, but Little is much more cautious until he’s playing hide-and-seek.  The second story has the two rabbits climbing Cloudy Mountain.  Little has a lot of fun finding dandelions and blowing them.  So when the clouds start coming and making it hard to see, he gets cross when Big insists that it’s time to go.  The third story has a lot of danger that Little seems to find and Big is always watching to keep him safe.  Soon though, Little’s own inner voice is showing him the right choice.  The final story returns the rabbits back home as they discuss Little’s favorite place.

All of the stories carry that same loving warmth as the original book.  There is the ever-present but not smothering parental character and the mischievous child character.  McBratney has managed to incorporate situations that human parents will face into a cloudy mountain and a large field.  Children will recognize their parents’ efforts to keep them safe, redirect them, and be forced to change plans sometimes and spoil the fun.

McBratney’s The art is a large part of the charm here, but so is his writing style.  He keeps it simple but sunny, always giving a cheery outlook in both images and text.  Perhaps my favorite image is when Little is caught thinking of going into a big hole.  His odd leap away from the hole when caught captures exactly the body-language of a child in the same situation.

This is bound to be embraced by parents who loved the first book.  They will find themselves happily right back in the same loving, warm place.  Expect plenty of bedtime repeat reads.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Hit the Road, Jack by Robert Burleigh

| Tasha

hit the road jack

Hit the Road, Jack by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Ross MacDonald

Opening this book, I was surprised that it was not based on the song at all.  Instead, this is a tribute to Jack Kerouac’s On the Road.  Jack in this picture book is a jackrabbit who longs to travel America.  So he leaves New York and rides his bicycle to Boston and then Buffalo.  Pennsylvania and Cleveland are next with Detroit too.  Jack spends some time in Chicago before heading back into the countryside and hopping a train.  A car carries him to the Great Plains and Mount Rushmore.  He sees the Rockies and the desert mesas before arriving at the Golden Gate.  Jack has reached his west coast destination, but the road still calls. 

Burleigh takes the picture book done in verse to another level here.  Never forced, always brimming with honesty and joy, this verse rhymes but does so in a sophisticated way.  It has all of the rhythm of the beat poets inside of it too, paying double homage to Kerouac both in subject and style.  Young readers will explore the United States in this book, but even better, they will get a feel for what makes America great. 

MacDonald’s illustrations have a playfulness and joy that matches the text well.  Done with a vintage feel, Jack has huge ears but is more human than rabbit most of the time.  Shown in his leather jacket and rolled-up jeans, Jack is the ideal companion on the road.

This is a special book where subject matter and form combine to create something all the more amazing.  It may be difficult to get this into the hands of the right kids, but it is worth the challenge for a book this good.  It will also make a great book to share with elementary classes studying the United States.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Abrams Books for Young Readers.

Review: Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket by Tatyana Feeney

| Tasha

small bunnys blue blanket

Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket by Tatyana Feeney

Small Bunny did everything with his blue blanket.  He took it everywhere with him.  His blanket helped him read hard words, swing higher on the swings, and paint the best pictures.  But one day, Small Bunny’s mother thinks that Blue Blanket should be washed.  Small Bunny tried to hide, but his mother found him.  So after Small Bunny’s bath, it was Blue Blanket’s turn.  Small Bunny stood and watched the washer for the entire 107 minutes that it took to wash.  Then Blue Blanket had to dry on the line.  Small Bunny’s mother was sure that the blanket was good as new, but Small Bunny did not want a new blanket, he wanted his good old friend back.

There is such charm in this very simple book thanks to the illustrations.  Done in a limited palette of blues and small touches of pink, the minimalist lines give a sense of space and movement.  Somehow this simple rabbit illustration manages to convey deep emotions, including joy, impatience and deep worry.  The sweep of the blanket through the pages adds motion.

The playful illustrations offer a lightness to the book that elevates it nicely.  The writing is simple and basic.  I enjoyed the touch where Small Bunny’s mother told him it would take only a minute for his blanket to be washed and it took 107.  Lovely.  I also enjoyed the fact that this book was not about getting a child to let go of a beloved blanket, but instead just getting it washed.  The ending is satisfying too.

Playful and fun to read, this book will be enjoyed by the preschool audience.  The simple words and illustrations will work well with a toddler story time.  Appropriate for ages 1-3.

Reviewed from copy received from Alfred A. Knopf.

Review: The Scariest Thing of All by Debi Gliori

| Tasha

scariest thing of all

The Scariest Thing of All by Debi Gliori

This story of a very frightened young rabbit is uplifted by the marvelous illustrations.  Pip was a very little rabbit and had a huge list of things that he was scared of.  The list included rain because it reminded him of the sound a leggy wiggler makes in its web, bubbles in the water reminded him of a gobbler hiding at the bottom of the pond, and tree stumps were like the teeth of a giant wood troll.  He exhausted himself because he was so worried and frightened all the time.  He was so tired he fell fast asleep until dinnertime.  When he woke up, he heard a dreadful Raaar! Pip ran and ran, as far away from the sound as he could.  Finally, he stopped deep in the woods.  He saw a scary thing nearby, and heard the sound again.  Pip was going to have to be brave and smart to figure out what was making that horrible noise.

Gliori’s story of a small rabbit who is afraid of almost everything will resonate with children.  The ending has Pip becoming a much braver rabbit.  The book does conclude a bit too quickly and neatly.  Gliori spends much of her story developing the depths of fear and panic that Pip is living with.  All of that plays out very strongly, creating a firm foundation for the story. 

The art here really makes this picture book special.  It moves from the sunny warmth of Pip’s family and home to the dark blueness of a woods at night.  Throughout the woods scenes there is an incredible blue moon rising above him, giving a haunted feel to those pages that is marvelously chilling. 

This would make a great pick for a preschool Halloween story time because it has monsters and creepy things but won’t frighten.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Good News Bad News by Jeff Mack

| Tasha

good news bad news

Good News Bad News by Jeff Mack

So much depends on your point of view in this jaunty picture book that is written in a very limited vocabulary of just four words.  The book opens with the good news of a shared picnic.  Then the bad news of rain arrives.  Then the good news of the rabbit’s umbrella.  Bad news carries the rat off on the wind.  Filled with lots of energy and action, this picture book dashes along at a breakneck speed as readers look forward to the inevitable next twist in the tale. 

Mack manages to create a cohesive story with great pacing using just four words.  Reading like an animated short, the interchange of optimism and pessimism is sure to delight both sorts of personalities.  It gives us all a chance to laugh together as the poor rat is constantly disappointed and the rabbit doesn’t reach his breaking point until almost the end of the book.  By that point, the ups and downs of the story will have everyone ready to burst.

Good news!  The book is wonderful and is out now!  Good news!  It’s a great pick for new readers!  Good news!  No bad news at all.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Chronicle Books.

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Review: Mr. and Mrs. Bunny–Detectives Extraordinaire by Polly Horvath

| Tasha

mr and mrs bunny detectives

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny – Detectives Extraordinaire! by Polly Horvath

Madeline has always taken care of her parents rather than the other way around.  She knows they won’t come to her school events, not even the graduation ceremony that Prince Charles will be attending!  Because they aren’t interested, she has to find a way herself to get the required white shoes for the ceremony.  But when she returns home after waitressing, she discovers that her parents have been kidnapped by foxes!  The only one who can help them is Madeline, who will also need help.  She finds it in Mr. and Mrs. Bunny who have just become detectives, having purchased the necessary fedoras for that sort of work.  The three set out to solve the mystery and rescue Madeline’s parents.  On the way, they have to consort with garlic-bread munching marmots, stand up to the Bunny Council, learn to drive a car wearing disco shoes, and become fast friends.

Horvath takes a clever premise and allows it to twist and turn in her hands, creating a book that is quirky and ultimately lovable.  Her writing is uproariously funny, taking modern culture and making wonderful fun of it along the way.  At the same time, this remains a talking animal book, retaining all of the warmth and charm of that sort of tale.  So there is also plenty of tea, hot soup, and even prune cake to go around.  Think of it as a cozy mystery for children.

Blackall’s illustrations add to the warm but quirky feel of the book.  Scattered nicely throughout the book to encourage young readers, the illustrations have a modern edge but also pay homage to old-fashioned children’s books.  She was the perfect pick for the book.

An ideal read aloud for elementary classes, this book also makes a cozy read all on your own.  Appropriate for ages 8-11.

Reviewed from copy received from Schwartz & Wade Books.

Review: Hocus Pocus by Sylvie Desrosiers

| Tasha

hocus pocus

Hocus Pocus by Sylvie Desrosiers and Remy Simard

This wordless picture book has the feel of a graphic novel, but one designed for very small children.  It tells the story of Mister Magic who heads home with his pet dog, feeds the dog, and then settles in listening to music with his headset.  Once he has fallen asleep, the rabbit jumps out of his hat.  On the counter is a grocery bag and he spots some carrots up there.  But he has to sneak past the sleeping dog to get there.  He has the great idea of wearing slippers to be quieter, but then he crunches on a peanut.  The dog wakes up and discovers the rabbit’s activity, but the rabbit is able to soothe him back to sleep with some violin music.  But that is only the first round, as the dog and rabbit try to outwit each other.

This is a very funny picture book that emerging readers will enjoy.  It’s not a wordless book for toddlers who would miss the humor of the story, but rather one for slightly older children who will read this book like watching a silent cartoon.  The humor is pure slapstick fun, channeling the Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny feel with plenty of physical gags. 

The art here is crisp and clean with a modern vibe.  The colors are vibrant, bright and very appealing.  Children who pay close attention to the illustrations will see some of the jokes coming, making it all the more fun to read.

A modern picture book that is full of classic humor, this book has great appeal.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Kids Can Press.

Also reviewed by 100 Scope Notes and Sal’s Fiction Addiction.