Bunnies on Ice

All year, the narrator -- a young bunny with a penchant for pink and polka dots -- longs for ice-skating time. While her family goes for a swim, she glides a doll along an inner-tube's surface. While the others harvest pumpkins and rake leaves, she adds skates to a scarecrow's ensemble. Finally, it's winter: she heads for the now-frozen pond, proclaiming that she is a champion ice-skater and detailing for the reader what it's like to be one: "I have a lot of fans"; "I can do a figure eight with my eyes closed." The illustrations paint a far more realistic picture: her fans are her parents and younger sibling (plus a multitude of perched birds), and the messy shape she inscribes on the ice is hardly a figure eight. Back at home, the narrator explains the importance of a balanced diet (toasted marshmallows) and keeping one's muscles loose (playing in a bubble bath). Bedtime brings a determination to "try again tomorrow." Throughout, Wright maintains a consistently childlike point of view, capturing the intensity of childhood obsession as well as her character's persistent optimism. The little skater may be an unreliable narrator, but she is totally sincere, believing wholeheartedly in her assertions and having a wonderful time. The full-bleed color-saturated illustrations, with their almost palpable texture, will pull readers in to the bunny's small world. And the cool palette -- whites and grays, mint greens and light pinks -- of the outside scenes makes the warm, darker indoor scenes that much more cozy. martha v. parravano