BUNNIES ON ICE

Bursting with confidence, a young skater describes what it takes to be a champion (at least in her own mind) in this wobbly but amusing manifesto.

First, of course, there’s the waiting for spring, summer and fall to pass. Once the pond freezes, it’s time to whirl, twirl, spin (and take a few falls, but never mind) before an admiring crowd of birds and family members. Afterward, champions will also need hot chocolate, a hot bath and, at bedtime, warm blankets to snuggle beneath. Hurried along by a narrative that often runs to just a line or a few words per spread, the illustrations portray a rabbit family tending a garden, paddling lazily in the pond or gathering in a cozy tree-trunk home through the seasons. They then watch anxiously from the snowy sideline as their “champion” resolutely weaves, glides and crashes on the ice. Along with leaving her brushwork visible on heavily textured canvas, Wright uses a palette of harmonious pinks and browns to imbue each scene with an air of comfy domesticity. The rabbits, however, all look so alike that it’s often hard to pick out the narrator, and though the narrator is addressing readers or listeners, neither she nor anyone else ever looks up from their activities to make eye contact. A healthy if impersonal dose of self-affirmation delivered by a cast with long, fetching bunny ears. (Picture book. 5-7)