Knuffle Bunny By: Mo Willems

Williams, M. (2004). Knuffle Bunny. Hyperion Books for Children.

Caldecott Honor - 2005

I like how the book displays “A Cautionary Tale by: Mo Willems” on the front cover, because that intrigues me to know what mischief will unfold within the cover for me to learn a life lesson from. Mo Willems illustrations are funny and appealing to both a child’s perspective as well as to an adult perspective. I think of the goofy spin on the simplistic, cartoonish drawings on top of real black and white photo settings punctuate the emotions throughout the story. The child Trixie (how fun is that name?!) is hugging the bunny so hard in the first Laundromat picture that the bunny’s eyes are bulging and his appendages are swaying to the extreme left. The “photos” of his family, one with him screaming his head off after being born to a whipped looking pair of proud parents, to the way the baby is squished and oozing out of the kangaroo pouch baby carrier is hilarious! I laugh at Trixie swinging her mom’s bra around in the Laundromat, although in class I would not be drawing any attention to that.

I love how the sheer look of panic sweeps over Trixie as she realizes that her precious Knuffle Bunny is missing. When she tries, in her garbly baby talk to tell her daddy, his oblivious reply is “That’s right. We’re going home.” The illustrations are adorable and so funny for both an adult and a child while they share the book together. When Trixie goes limp and “boneless” then “bawled” to express herself, you are definitely given her perspective of being a frustrated kid who can’t communicate her needs! Each page makes me laugh, including her “Uh, Hello!?!” look she gives her dad when mom asks “Where’s Knuffle Bunny?” In the end, they find it and Trixie’s first words are indeed “Knuffle Bunny!” Appealing for a quick read aloud to Pre-K through First Grade, although my kids in Second Grade would still giggle at it!