Reviews of Rabbit & Bear: Attack of the Snack
“A wonderfully silly tale that fits important lessons among literal poo humor.” —Booklist
“Rabbit and Bear: Attack of the Snack is a humorous, touching story that’s perfect for new and intermediate readers.” —Foreword Reviews
“A pointed jab at wanton fearmongering, lightened by a bit of philosophy and rather a lot of gas.” —Kirkus
Praise for the Rabbit & Bear series:
“Rabbit’s Bad Habits is a breath of fresh air in children’s fiction, a laugh-out-loud story of rabbit and wolf and bear, of avalanches and snowmen. The sort of story that makes you want to send your children to bed early, so you can read it to them.” —Neil Gaiman
“Rabbit's Bad Habits should become an instant modern classic. Stands shoulder to shoulder with Pooh and Toad. Cheeky, delightful and hilarious.” —Eoin Colfer
“A bear's kindness and generosity sweeten a grumpy rabbit’s sour outlook in this wintry woodland encounter. Gough aims both high and low. On the one hand, he shows how the peaceable responses of Bear, equanimity unshaken despite discovering that her food stores have disappeared, to Rabbit’s rude comments and behavior gradually work a profound change in his character—and on the other, in the course of their exchanges, he has the long-eared lagomorph deliver a clinically explicit, hilariously extended disquisition on why his kind eats its own poo....Young readers will come away with fresh insights into both poo and peacemaking.” (Animal fantasy. 6-8)” —Kirkus, starred review
“The lessons here are serious, but the irreverent text is uproariously funny, full of scatological humor and wild postulating. Field’s illustrations are the perfect pairing, capturing the wild-eyed panic alongside the sheer adorableness of the characters. A wonderfully silly tale that fits important lessons among literal poo humor.” —Emily Graham, Booklist
“Whether it’s the grisly truth about leporidae eating their poo, the hilarious, touching dynamic between big, gentle Bear and cantankerous, selfish—but not irredeemable—Rabbit, or Jim Field’s blue-white, deft and atmospheric images, there’s much to love in this splendid little book.” —The Guardian
“A delight, with super illustrations and a lovely story about friendship.” —Independent on Sunday
“A laugh-out-loud celebration of friendship, forest life...and poo.” —Metro
“This beginning chapter book is delightfully weird, hilarious, and tender-hearted!” —Imagination Soup
The lessons here are serious, but the irreverent text is uproariously funny, full of scatological humor and wild postulating. Field’s illustrations are the perfect pairing, capturing the wild-eyed panic alongside the sheer adorableness of the characters. A wonderfully silly tale that fits important lessons among literal poo humor.
This beginning chapter book is delightfully weird, hilarious, and tender-hearted!
A delight, with super illustrations and a lovely story about friendship.
Rabbit's Bad Habits should become an instant modern classic. Stands shoulder to shoulder with Pooh and Toad. Cheeky, delightful and hilarious.
Whether it’s the grisly truth about leporidae eating their poo, the hilarious, touching dynamic between big, gentle Bear and cantankerous, selfish—but not irredeemable—Rabbit, or Jim Field’s blue-white, deft and atmospheric images, there’s much to love in this splendid little book.
Reviews about the Rabbit & Bear series:
A laugh-out-loud celebration of friendship, forest life...and poo.
Rabbit's Bad Habits is a breath of fresh air in children’s fiction, a laugh-out-loud story of rabbit and wolf and bear, of avalanches and snowmen. The sort of story that makes you want to send your children to bed early, so you can read it to them.
Reviews about the Rabbit & Bear series:
A laugh-out-loud celebration of friendship, forest life...and poo.
03/01/2020
Gr 2–4—Rabbit and Bear are enjoying a soak in the lake when something falls out of the sky that changes the course of their day, and perhaps even their lives. The "Mysterious Thing" turns out to be a small owl, which Rabbit quickly condemns as a potentially vicious predator and soon persuades Woodpecker, Mouse, and Vole to agree. Bear finds their judgments hasty but wanders off to eat blueberries rather than risk a confrontation with her friends. Meanwhile, Rabbit and the others place the still unconscious owl in a jail constructed from a hollow tree stump for her potential crimes. When Owl regains consciousness, the animals learn she is the eponymous "snack" as she fell out of the sky while fleeing larger owls from the next valley who were trying to eat her. Rabbit sees the error of his ways and apologizes. The final act includes gathering Bear's blueberry poo to attract dung beetles for Owl to snack upon, and a comedy show in which the greatest hit is the loudest belch. The story's pointed politics are readily apparent—early on, Rabbit's list of scariest words include "Trumpwig"—however, the underlying message addresses universal themes of the evil that comes from prematurely judging people who are different from ourselves. The story's use of bathroom humor translates these often difficult themes into a realm of absurdity that will certainly delight and engage young readers. VERDICT A humorous elementary read in which social commentary and poop jokes can peacefully coexist.—Kelly Topita, Anne Arundel County Public Library, MD
2019-12-18
A sudden new arrival prompts a flare of xenophobia in Bear's excitable lapine buddy.
Any resemblance to current affairs must, of course, be coincidental. Once the tiny feathered stranger who has crashed into a tree and fallen unconscious is identified as an owl, Rabbit, who has never met one before, is terrified. "Owls…eat you ALIVE! And the next day they BURP UP YOUR BONES!" he shouts. "Lock her up!" Failing in her effort to defuse the panic ("One bone at a time, or all of them at once?"), Bear sadly wanders off in search of blueberries as Rabbit proceeds to whip the other forest creatures into a frenzy. Happily, all ends well after Owl wakes up and calmly explains that she is a small burrowing owl who eats only fruit and bugs—mostly dung beetles. Embarrassed, Rabbit and the rest apologize and pitch in to furnish the owl with a comfy new home…liberally daubed with blueberry poo (Bear's contribution) that, to the amazement of all, instantly attracts, as Owl puts it, "Fast foooooo…foooooo…fooooood!" Bear and Rabbit agree that everyone's "normal on the outside" and "weird on the inside"—"And that's OK." Woodsy duotone scenes on nearly every page feature comically wide-eyed creatures of diverse size and species looking amazed, panic-stricken, or, in Owl's case, disarmingly cute.
A pointed jab at wanton fearmongering, lightened by a bit of philosophy and rather a lot of gas. (Animal fantasy. 6-8)