Sunny Bunnies

Greg Pincus, father of the Fibs poetry form at his blog GottaBook and social media tour guide at Happy Accident, penned an ode to summer with a new poem, "At the Beach - a beach poem"  last week.  His poem inspired me to pick up Margie Blumberg's book Sunny Bunnies from the review stack.

  A rabbit family packs up the car and heads to the beach where they play in the waves, fly a kite, enjoy a picnic lunch and build a sand castle. Blumberg's story rhymes along with a pleasant read-aloud rhythm. She hits all the activities a child enjoys at the beach.  June Goulding's bunnies are picture book sweet and she fills the page with nice details including a sumptuous picnic with foods young children will recognize.  At the end of the day, jars of lightening bugs glow while the family toasts marshmallows around a campfire. She also keeps the geography of the beach consistent in the different views.  Her end papers are a map of Carrot Cake Park where the family has spent the day. I really like presenting maps to young children.  Blumberg and Goulding hit the mark with the book's last pages as the children, who are still not tired, jump out of bed to check on their parents and find them completely zonked, sound asleep from their big day at the beach.
  
Sunny Bunnies, written by Margie Blumbert, illustrated by June Goulding, MB Publishing, 2008

You're Lovable to Me

This time of year I am always drawn to bunny books the way I am to the lovely little fuzzy-wuzzy, sweet little toy bunnies that appear all over the world of commerce for Easter baskets.



You're Lovable to Me by Kat Yeh, illustrated by Sue Anderson, Random House, 2010.

This book is more about Mama Bunny than her children. The story reassures children of their mother's unconditional love despite the fact that "it had been a big day, it had been a hard night." Mama vows "no matter what your feelings are, what ever they may be...I'm you mama. You're my bunnies and you're lovable to me."

Apparently none of these bunnies are teenagers yet.

Mama is a single parent. After the bunnies are in bed, she washes the dishes, works at her desk and falls asleep on the sofa. When Grandpa Bunny arrives for evening tea he tucks a blanket around his sleeping daughter and repeats the stanzas and states, "I'm your papa. You're still my bunny. And you're lovable to me."

Sue Anderson's soft color palette gives the story a quiet tone which fits a bedtime story.



This is a nice little tribute to parenting. It may be that the book will strike a chord of empathy in the kiddos' hearts for their parents, but, like the book, Five Minutes' Peace by Jill Murphy, this story might be more appreciated by parents than kids.