Danny Frank Second Book Review

Howe, Deborah, James Howe, and Alan Daniel. Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery. New
York: Anthem, 1979. Print.

Similarly like my first book review, I decided to revisit one of my favorite books growing up as a child for Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery, was one of my favorite stories growing up as a child. In this story the Monroe family discovers a rabbit in a movie theater, while watching the film Dracula. After bringing the rabbit home, the families two pets, Chester a cat, and Harold a dog, become suspicious of this rabbit and believe the it has some vampire-like characteristics. This book is narrated from Harold’s point of view as he and the rest of the Monroe family soon observe some bizarre occurrences around the house like vegetables mysteriously turning all white throughout the night, which sends Chester into a frantic search to prove that Bunnicula is indeed a vegetable sucking vampire bunny.

Upon briefly mentioning this book in class last week, it sparked my interest in picking the book up once again. Although this would be my first time actually “reading” the story. Although, I am not the biggest audiobook fan, I did have a couple of books on tape that I would often listen to as I fell asleep growing up. Somewhere between the ages of ten and twelve I believe I listened to the book for the first time. Now re-reading the book I can vividly remember the voices of the characters in the book, and it’s interesting that in my mind while reading is exactly how I would imagine them if they were truly real, because of all the times listening to the story falling asleep. My audio book copy was narrated by Lou Jacobi, who I think does an excellent job in bringing the characters to life.

I also believe that due to my expose to these suspense and thrilling stories (like the Bunnicula series and Goosebumps) growing up, has led me to be very adventuresome and always seeking out new thrills. These type of books that constantly want you to turn the page have seemed to be some of the few books that can keep my interest. I feel that the reason this book has continued to stay popular throughout the years is not only because you want to continue reading, but also because it's easily relatable for kids and it introduces an interesting concept in the theme of vampires.

Although the book is obviously fantastical, and we have cats and dogs talking to each other and reading books, I feel that it is fun as a child to read stories from animal's point of view. Adding in the aspect of a rabbit, which has been referenced in being the most tame and shy mammal, having "vampiristic" powers adds to the comedic theme of the book. A couple other funny parts throughout the book is when Chester shouts, "Today vegetables! Tomorrow the world!" referencing to the fact that Bunnicula has the potential ability to take over the world. Another comical part is when Chester misunderstands that he should drive a stake through a vampire's heart and believes that he needs to use a steak to do so.


Overall the suspense combined with the good sense of humor and vampire elements that are not to scary for children make this an excellent book. This book is the first in the many series. Multiple sequels have been written and consist of "Howliday Inn" and "The Celery Stalks at Midnight" as the second and third books, respectively.