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Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners
Mr. Rabbit's new neighbors are Otters. OTTERS! But he doesn't know anything about Otters. Will they get along? Will they be friends? Just treat otters the same way you'd like them to treat you, advises wise Mr. Owl. And so begins Mr. Rabbit's reflection on good manners.
In her smart, quirky style Laurie Keller highlights how to be a good friend and neighbor--just follow the Golden Rule! This title has Common Core connections.
A Junior Library Guild Selection
Do Unto Otters is a 2008 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.
In her smart, quirky style Laurie Keller highlights how to be a good friend and neighbor--just follow the Golden Rule! This title has Common Core connections.
A Junior Library Guild Selection
Do Unto Otters is a 2008 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.
34 pages, Hardcover
First published September 4, 2007
38 people are currently reading
1218 people want to read
About the author
Laurie Keller
38 books118 followersLaurie Keller grew up in Muskegon, Michigan. She always loved to draw, paint and write stories. She spent much of her time performing in a local dance tour company and dancing in and choreographing some civic theatre shows.
She graduated several years later with a BFA in Illustration. She also got a job as a greeting card illustrator at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, Missouri. She is the author and illustrator of many children's books.
She graduated several years later with a BFA in Illustration. She also got a job as a greeting card illustrator at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, Missouri. She is the author and illustrator of many children's books.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 436 reviews
November 15, 2016
I don't know anything about otters.
What if we don't get along?
Now that a percentage of our population* thinks they have a mandate to be cruel to others, this book serves as a great lesson in acceptance, tolerance, and plain old civility. Try to read it to your kids while within earshot of other adults. It seems some of them need a refresher course.
*A wise and nasty woman once referred to them as "deplorables."
What if we don't get along?
Now that a percentage of our population* thinks they have a mandate to be cruel to others, this book serves as a great lesson in acceptance, tolerance, and plain old civility. Try to read it to your kids while within earshot of other adults. It seems some of them need a refresher course.
*A wise and nasty woman once referred to them as "deplorables."
November 17, 2019
When a family of otters move in next door, Mr. Rabbit isn't sure what to think. Will they be friends? How should one treat otters? Then wise old Mr. Owl imparts an important piece of advice: Do unto otters as you would have them do unto you. As Mr. Rabbit lists all the ways he would like his otter neighbors to behave, the reader in turn learns how they should behave to otters (and others)...
An amusing and effective exploration of The Golden Rule, Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners offers an animal's-eye-view of issues of etiquette, and the proper way to behave toward others. The many little speech bubbles expand upon the main text in humorous and apropos ways, while the illustrations themselves capture the zany appeal of the cast of characters. Recommended to anyone looking for an appealing book about manners for the picture-book set.
An amusing and effective exploration of The Golden Rule, Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners offers an animal's-eye-view of issues of etiquette, and the proper way to behave toward others. The many little speech bubbles expand upon the main text in humorous and apropos ways, while the illustrations themselves capture the zany appeal of the cast of characters. Recommended to anyone looking for an appealing book about manners for the picture-book set.
May 2, 2008
Well, it almost got only 3 stars from me because even though it was funny (the extremely polite stinging bee is truly hilarious), it ‘s a bit too much like a lesson on manners; it’s too concrete. But hey, kids like concrete. The story & pictures are funny. The concepts are certainly presented well enough. The bee, and the author’s information on the back cover bumped this up to a solid 4 stars and maybe even 4 ½: the author lives in the woods near Lake Michigan next to an otter and a rabbit and they inspired the story. Very funny blurb and that really won me over. It’s also a realy good read aloud book with lots of extras on every page for kids to notice.
June 30, 2017
Those with preschool kids will love this. Teaches how to treat others will keeping the kiddos entertained. My son loves it. Doo-dee doo!
October 14, 2012
This book is about a rabbit who has otters move in next door. He is worried about the otters because his previous neighbor was not a very good neighbor. He consults with the wise old owl who simply tells him to Do unto Otters a you would have them do unto you. The pictures in the book are great. The otters look very sill and the rabbit does too. The rabbit goes through the list of the all of the things he would like the otters to do, be kind, be fair, be polite, etc. and the wise old owl tells him there you have it.
Learning Experience: This is a great book to read when you are teaching classroom rules to children. This book should be used at the beginning of the year and it would be a wonderful way to get children talking about the things they can do to be kind, polite and fair. Using this book you could work with the children to come up with the classroom rules.
Learning Experience: This is a great book to read when you are teaching classroom rules to children. This book should be used at the beginning of the year and it would be a wonderful way to get children talking about the things they can do to be kind, polite and fair. Using this book you could work with the children to come up with the classroom rules.
July 6, 2016
This cute, funny picture book will be great to read on the first day of school, when we're building our classroom community and setting the behavior expectations. Based on The Golden Rule, this book reminds young readers to treat others the way you would like to be treated. The illustrations are perfect, and according to the author, she "used acrylic paint (which she SHARED with her friends) on Arches watercolor paper to CARINGLY create the illustrations for this book. NO TEASING took place during the making of this book. Everyone involved COOPERATED, MADE GOOD EYE CONTACT, and THANKED each other for their hard work. There was one uncomfortable hair-pulling incident that took place toward the end of the project, but everyone involved promptly APOLOGIZED and have since FORGIVEN each other."
June 23, 2023
Cute book about manners and treating others with kindness.
February 7, 2017
Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners by Laurie Keller is a picture book that teaches manners. One day, a rabbit is hopping home to his tree when he notices his new neighbors, the otters. Rabbit has never had otter neighbors before and he becomes worried that he won’t get along with them. An owl comes along and teaches rabbit that he should treat the otters as he would want the otters to treat him. As he walks around with the owl, he tells the owl that he would want the otters to be friendly and polite. The rabbit thinks the otters should know when to say “Please,” “Thank you,” and “Excuse me.” He decides he’d like the otters to be honest, considerate, and kind. Lastly, he hopes the otters would cooperate, play fair, share, not tease, and know when to apologize and forgive. After talking with owl, rabbit has to decide how he will treat his new neighbors.
Immediately, when I noticed this children’s book, I decided I had to read it because of the punny title. The twist on the classic quote, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” caught my attention. It was too great of a title to not give the book a chance. What also drew me into the book was the illustrations on the cover. I enjoyed the cartoony style, which created a lighthearted and joyful tone. The colors were also very bright and cheerful, colors like pink, light blue, bright red, and a soft green. Many of the characters were also portrayed with a smile on their face and doing something exciting or fun. All this really helped create the tone of the book.
The theme of this book is very direct: treat others with kindness by using your manners. The book reviews various ways to be polite and friendly and teaches children a valuable lesson about being nice to others. The book not only informs children about manners, but it illustrates it too. This way children can see what it looks like in action. To top it all off, the children’s book even teaches how to say “Please,” “Thank you,” and “Excuse me” in five different languages.
I highly recommend this book. It’s not only a fun and interesting read with its punny storyline and jokes, but it teaches children a valuable lesson. It can be difficult to influence children to always incorporate their manners, however, I think this book would encourage children to be kind and polite. The illustrations are animated and bright, which I think the children will love, I know I did. Overall, the book is outstanding.
Immediately, when I noticed this children’s book, I decided I had to read it because of the punny title. The twist on the classic quote, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” caught my attention. It was too great of a title to not give the book a chance. What also drew me into the book was the illustrations on the cover. I enjoyed the cartoony style, which created a lighthearted and joyful tone. The colors were also very bright and cheerful, colors like pink, light blue, bright red, and a soft green. Many of the characters were also portrayed with a smile on their face and doing something exciting or fun. All this really helped create the tone of the book.
The theme of this book is very direct: treat others with kindness by using your manners. The book reviews various ways to be polite and friendly and teaches children a valuable lesson about being nice to others. The book not only informs children about manners, but it illustrates it too. This way children can see what it looks like in action. To top it all off, the children’s book even teaches how to say “Please,” “Thank you,” and “Excuse me” in five different languages.
I highly recommend this book. It’s not only a fun and interesting read with its punny storyline and jokes, but it teaches children a valuable lesson. It can be difficult to influence children to always incorporate their manners, however, I think this book would encourage children to be kind and polite. The illustrations are animated and bright, which I think the children will love, I know I did. Overall, the book is outstanding.
September 9, 2017
So, I will say I find this kind of book a little difficult to share as a read aloud. I have been using it to introduce my 3rd-5th graders to Volunteer State Book Awards this year. As usual with any kind of word play, and puns in particular, I find that a little introduction goes a long way toward making a difference in how a book is received. The concept of puns is surprisingly (to me at least) alien to a lot of my students and I find myself pausing to look at them expectantly when I hit some of the particularly punny parts. It is like they need a cue that something is not to be taken literally, and after the first few, their minds, some at least, kick into pun gear. I am curious to see how this story goes over with my younger students, who are often far more literal and have less vocabulary fluidity.
I may also have been having a little too much fun reading the speech bubbles, particularly the one under the "Excuse Me" section. Now, if any students suddenly remember synonyms because of flatulence in a speech bubble, I will consider myself vindicated. Heh. Also, Pig Latin, excuse me, Igpay Atlinlay. OMG. All my copies of Dragon Slayers Academy are now out too since SOMEone may have mentioned a character in those stories who has a pig that only speaks in Pig Latin. Ahem.
This story also served the purpose of providing a great way to get a visual esson on using our library catalog, and how,the ABC order thing has a real purpose. (See face palm.) Have seen the light go on for several students who finally seem to get the correlation between the sections of the library, the author's last name, and why they keep hearing about ABC order. Also have had a run on Laurie Keller's other titles. This lets me know I need to revamp how I'm teaching some library skills.
I may also have been having a little too much fun reading the speech bubbles, particularly the one under the "Excuse Me" section. Now, if any students suddenly remember synonyms because of flatulence in a speech bubble, I will consider myself vindicated. Heh. Also, Pig Latin, excuse me, Igpay Atlinlay. OMG. All my copies of Dragon Slayers Academy are now out too since SOMEone may have mentioned a character in those stories who has a pig that only speaks in Pig Latin. Ahem.
This story also served the purpose of providing a great way to get a visual esson on using our library catalog, and how,the ABC order thing has a real purpose. (See face palm.) Have seen the light go on for several students who finally seem to get the correlation between the sections of the library, the author's last name, and why they keep hearing about ABC order. Also have had a run on Laurie Keller's other titles. This lets me know I need to revamp how I'm teaching some library skills.
September 30, 2019
Mr. Rabbit is worried about his new neighbors, the Otters. Mr. Rabbit doesn't know anything about otters, so he is unsure what to do and say. He gets some good advice though, and learns to treat them as he wants to be treated. A cute book about good manners.
October 9, 2017
A humorous and cute story about manners.
December 12, 2018
Awesome book. It was funny because of the cheese parts.
March 26, 2018
Text-to-World Connection
Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners is a story about treating others the way you would like to be treated. I would use this book to discuss positive and negative behaviors with my students. It reinforces that using your manners and being kind will go a long way when interacting with other people. After reading the book we would complete a T-chart and list positive and negative behaviors demonstrated in the story. I think this book will be a great way to model positive behavior and help build a better classroom community. Another way to keep students engaged in this lesson is to pair the students up and allow them to role play. One student can demonstrate positive behavior and the other student will show the opposite.
Do Unto Otters: A Book About Manners is a story about treating others the way you would like to be treated. I would use this book to discuss positive and negative behaviors with my students. It reinforces that using your manners and being kind will go a long way when interacting with other people. After reading the book we would complete a T-chart and list positive and negative behaviors demonstrated in the story. I think this book will be a great way to model positive behavior and help build a better classroom community. Another way to keep students engaged in this lesson is to pair the students up and allow them to role play. One student can demonstrate positive behavior and the other student will show the opposite.
October 15, 2019
When otters move in next to Mr Rabbit he gets worried about how they will be as neighbors. Mr. Owl encourages him to treat them like he wants to be treated. Mr. Rabbit thinks through how he would like the otters to treat him and comes up with a great guide to being a good neighbor, friend, and world citizen.
I think every classroom needs a copy of this book. It does a great job of cover the basics of how to live and act in a way that will keep the peace, start healthy flows of communication, and in general make you a nice person to be around. It's succinct and presented in a fun and memorable way. The illustrations are funny and entertaining as is the text. Highly recommended to classrooms, families, and any other group where kids get together.
I think every classroom needs a copy of this book. It does a great job of cover the basics of how to live and act in a way that will keep the peace, start healthy flows of communication, and in general make you a nice person to be around. It's succinct and presented in a fun and memorable way. The illustrations are funny and entertaining as is the text. Highly recommended to classrooms, families, and any other group where kids get together.
October 28, 2018
Do Unto Otters" Is a lovely little play on words from the quote, "do unto others as you would have others do unto you". A brilliant and very humours book which could be read on the first day of school, when the class is learning about community and behavior expectations. The book reminds young readers to treat others the way you would like to be treated and it does this in a fun and engaging way. Every page is busy, giving children lots to look at and there are plenty of puns and anecdotes. Would work best with lower ks2
June 3, 2017
This is a cute book I found in looking for books that promote positive behaviors. The pictures are entertaining to look at, and the story has a lot of funny moments. The message is very clear and direct: learn and use manners to all. I like this as a fun way to promote important things - kids and adults alike!
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January 21, 2024Do Unto 'Otters' -- a play on The Golden Rule. What a clever book breaking down what The Golden Rule can look like with our classmates and peers! Oh what the world could look like if we all did unto otters ... err... others as we would have them do to us.
Read aloud for my class; a pairing to my class motto
Read aloud for my class; a pairing to my class motto
January 12, 2021
A little rabbit has an otter family that moves in near him, and he has so many questions. Like, are they friendly? Are we going to get along? The rabbit learns, though, to “treat otters the same way I’d want otters to treat me.”
This book has a great theme, and cute and funny illustrations.
This book has a great theme, and cute and funny illustrations.
February 14, 2018
Cute book about manners. Kids will love the illustrations.
September 19, 2019
My favorite part was when the rabbit had carrot pizza!
December 18, 2020
This one was worth the wait. I've had it on my to-read list for some time now as well as on hold with my library. It's funny and teaches important lessons. So good. From now on, I will treat otters better. I like Laurie Keller's work.
December 30, 2021
Such a cute book about manners. I love the rabbit and how he thinks the otters may treat him. But it all works out in the end. I love the illustrations too. Kids will love this book.
September 21, 2019
Gotta love a book about otters!
February 8, 2023
Do Unto Otters
Text-to-Self Connection
This was a great book to introduce students to the old "golden" rule. Treat others the way you would want to be treated. The Golden Rule is something children need to remember throughout their entire lives. This book teaches readers that although we're different, we should be nice and respect each other . The author uses a cute sense of humor while keeping readers engaged. In my classroom, one of my students isn't the nicest to the rest of his classmates. He struggles with his emotions however, really enjoys story time. I read this book yesterday striving toward his and other's social emotional learning. After reading, we had an open ended discussion about what does the "golden rule" mean to them. He was the first to raise his hand. I was very happy to see that he enjoyed this book. I look forward to see if this book helps him with his emotions and the ways he treats other.
Text-to-Self Connection
This was a great book to introduce students to the old "golden" rule. Treat others the way you would want to be treated. The Golden Rule is something children need to remember throughout their entire lives. This book teaches readers that although we're different, we should be nice and respect each other . The author uses a cute sense of humor while keeping readers engaged. In my classroom, one of my students isn't the nicest to the rest of his classmates. He struggles with his emotions however, really enjoys story time. I read this book yesterday striving toward his and other's social emotional learning. After reading, we had an open ended discussion about what does the "golden rule" mean to them. He was the first to raise his hand. I was very happy to see that he enjoyed this book. I look forward to see if this book helps him with his emotions and the ways he treats other.
August 2, 2012
Do Unto Otters is a delightful postmodern picturebook that employs acrylic paint on Arches watercolor paper to illustrate the golden rule in a fun-loving cartoon style. Mr. Rabbit’s happy-go-lucky frolic across double-page full-bleed spreads comes to an abrupt halt when he discovers that his new neighbors are otters. In a series of vignettes on single-page spreads, the anxiety that this news causes him is not only expressed in Mr. Rabbit’s words but is also reflected in Keller’s illustrations as each small scene punctuates his words like the quick shallow breathing that is indicative of hyperventilating. Luckily, Mr. Owl comes to his rescue with the sage advice to “do unto otters as you would have otters do unto you.” Mr. Rabbit is able to grasp the full meaning of these words by spending the rest of the book enumerating their practical ramifications with the help of his new neighbors who provide witty exemplars. “Do Unto Otters” would be a fun introduction to adages, puns, allusions, and metaficiton that could be adapted for any grade level.
September 13, 2011
I LOVE this book! Mr. Rabbit finds one day that three otters have moved in as his new neighbors. Worried about how they'll behave, he asks his friend Mr. Owl what he should do. Wise Owl tells him to "do unto otters as you would have otters do unto you." So begins Mr. Rabbit's explanation of how he thinks the otters should behave toward him. It's a perfect guide to manners and how to get along with people! A beautiful summary. I also like Laurie Keller's illustrations, especially the expressive ears of Mr. Rabbit. I've got to try this one in storytime soon, and it's a MUST for my library. Highly recommended!!
September 12, 2009
Great picture book about manners.
I really should have all of my coworkers read this book because it seems that this is something adults teach kids but seem to forget to apply it to themselves.. and I don't care if many adults don't have kids - either way they should go back to remembering the golden rule "do unto others what you have them do unto you." Except the author plays with words in this book and uses the word "otters".. fun to read but with a clear message.
I really should have all of my coworkers read this book because it seems that this is something adults teach kids but seem to forget to apply it to themselves.. and I don't care if many adults don't have kids - either way they should go back to remembering the golden rule "do unto others what you have them do unto you." Except the author plays with words in this book and uses the word "otters".. fun to read but with a clear message.
January 3, 2024
One of our favorite manners book. We have checked this one out of the library several times. Would love to find this at a thrift store and own it....8/21/15
We found it at the Rancho Mirage Library book sale!!!!. Still a favorite that makes us laugh every time we read it. You must read this book with inflection!...krb 10/24/16
Going through old picture books during our holiday break. We didn't laugh as much this time around..krb 1/3/24
We found it at the Rancho Mirage Library book sale!!!!. Still a favorite that makes us laugh every time we read it. You must read this book with inflection!...krb 10/24/16
Going through old picture books during our holiday break. We didn't laugh as much this time around..krb 1/3/24
September 11, 2023
This is a whimsical and humorous story about a rabbit who learns to befriend his otter neighbors with a little help from the Golden Rule. The otters and rabbit may live a bit differently, but both want kindness and respect from the other. The illustrations have a wacky, toothsome look reminiscent of Aardman Animations characters. Don't miss the funny author blurb on the book jacket!
July 14, 2014
Laurie Keller is always awesome. "Doo-Dee-Doo" We all loved the otters and the rabbit.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 436 reviews