From this week I will suggest and review a new bedtime story every week, one that you can read to or with your child. For this first week I have chosen one of Rabbit and Bear : Rabbit’s Bad Habits by
In its A5 format Rabbit and Bear : Rabbit’s Bad Habits is handy and can be conveniently carried round even on train and car journeys. What fascinates me the most about this story is the quirkiness of the ‘twist’. When we see Rabbit in his burrow we don’t expect him to be as weird as he turns out to be. His dirty secret is that he eats his own poo. You heard me right! I know! It made me jumped from my chair too. I let you imagine kids’ reaction to that: endless laughs mixed with disgust. This is not Rabbit’s only bad habit. He is a thief – he stole Bear’s food while he was sleeping . He is rude to others. He is grumpy all the time.
Bear on the contrary is a warm character. She has a sweet nature, is patient and super friendly.This story is unpredictable and manages to surprise the reader many times over.It has an educational value and teaches children (and certain parents too) that you should give others the chance to prove themselves wrong sometimes.Bear shows that by sticking to unfriendly Rabbit (read improbable friends) for a while even with all his bad habits, they can have a great friendship. It teaches tolerance, acceptance for differences and also patience.
The more I think about all the subliminal positive messages from this book the more I like it.
I am not sure the author and illustrator thought about all this when they worked on the book.
Whatever it is, Rabbit and Bear : Rabbit’s Bad Habits is a great book that will become a classic.
Bring on more Rabbit and Bear tales. I cannot see how they can be quirkier than this, though. Here is a challenge for the creators.
Rabbit and Bear : Rabbit’s Bad Habits is published by Hodder Children’s Books (14 January 2016).
