HENRY & THE BUCCANEER BUNNIES

In this unsubtle plug for bookworms everywhere, the nerdy offspring of feared pirate Barnacle Black Ear looks up from his compulsive reading to see a bad storm coming, rescues his dad and the rest of the Salty Carrot’s crew, then once ashore, quickly fashions a luxurious hut, fancy new outfits, delicious meals and other comforts from found materials—all using knowledge gained from tomes with titles like 101 Things To Do With Palm Fronds and Coconuts. Manders decks out his Chuck Jones–style illustrations in bunnies with long floppy ears and big toothy grins, along with a supporting cast of silly-looking seabirds. By the end, even Barnacle Black Ear’s come round, bellowing out in oversized type: “Aye! Buccaneer Bunnies will always need books!” A worthy message, even though it’s delivered with hull-smashing force, and less convincingly than in Judy Sierra’s Wild About Books (2004), illustrated by Marc Brown. (Picture books. 6-8)