The Vampire Bunny

Bunnicula and Friends #1

by James Howe, Jeff Mack (Illustrator)

Harold the dog thinks the Monroes' new pet rabbit is just a cute little bunny. But when the vegetables in the Monroes' kitchen start turning white, Chester the cat is worried. Could Bunnicula be a vampire bunny? Chester will stop at nothing to protect the Monroes and their vegetables from the threat.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Animals, Fiction, Vampires, Horror, Humor

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 6, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

James Howe has written more than eighty books in the thirty-plus years he's been writing for young readers. It sometimes confuses people that the author of the humorous Bunnicula series also wrote the dark young adult novel, The Watcher, or such beginning reader series as Pinky and Rex and the E.B. White Read Aloud Award-winning Houndsley and Catina and its sequels. But from the beginning of his career (which came about somewhat by accident after asking himself what kind of vampire a rabbit might make), he has been most interested in letting his imagination take him in whatever direction it cared to. So far, his imagination has led him to picture books, such as I Wish I Were a Butterfly and Brontorina (about a dinosaur who dreams of being a ballerina), mysteries, poetry (in the upcoming Addie on the Inside), and fiction that deals with issues that matter deeply to him. He is especially proud of The Misfits, which inspired national No Name-Calling Week (www.nonamecallingweek.org) and its sequel Totally Joe. He does not know where his imagination will take him in the next thirty-plus years, but he is looking forward to finding out.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is for young readers first learning to read. It is basically a simply telling of Bunnicula by James Howe. The characters are there. Bunnicula doesn't say anything, he drains vegetables. Chester is the detective and Harold the dog is our narrator.

Simple and straight forward. I think the original series is more interesting. This is too simple.

[Candace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chester the cat is convinced the new rabbit is a vampire bunny. When the Monroe family find white vegetables with all the juice drained from them, they are not sure what to think. Harold the dog finds the white vegetables strange, but he is not convinced Bunnicula the bunny is a vampire. It's not until the rabbit looks sick that Harold tries to help the bunny eat a bowl full of salad. Chester jumps at the rabbit trying to stop him from eating the salad. Will Chester succeed in stopping the vampire bunny from draining the vegetables? Will Bunnicula get to eat the salad with Harold's help?

This is a simple chapter book from the original, Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery by Deborah and James Howe. Consisting of seven chapters, the large text make this book a good read for level three readers. The pictures look like they are artistically rendereed. Though the mystery is lightly applied in the story, the book will hold a young reader's attention.

[Monster]

Bunnicula and Friends: The Vampire Bunny is a nice transitional read for the child moving from easy readers to longer chapter books. The book is a shortened, simplified version of Howe’s popular chapter book Bunnicula. As with most easy readers, the focus is on the action, so readers won’t get the detail, background, and character development present in the original book, but Howe is a fine writer and does a good job of capturing the flavor of the story. The pacing is good, and the book will catch and keep the reader’s interest. Bunnicula and Friends: The Vampire Bunny would be a great choice for older reluctant readers as well. At 42 pages, with fairly advanced vocabulary and sentence structure for an easy reader, this book has the potential to attract the interest of struggling readers and build students’ comfort level with longer titles. Highly recommended.

Review by Kirsten Kowalewski

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this is just a condensed version of Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery, the first story in the Bunnicula series by James Howe, our girls loved the comical and colorful illustrations and we enjoyed reading this book aloud together. It was a good opportunity to review the plot of the first story since we are working our way through the bigger chapter books very slowly. We've really enjoyed the books in the Bunnicula and Friends series and we will look for more of them at our local library.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's great to see "Bunnicula" adapted for the younger, transitional reader. This series is a hit with many of my students who read below grade level, but who enjoy a bit of sophisticated, ironic humor.

[Dr. T Loves Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

This didn't knock my socks off, but emerging readers might find it humorous and engaging. This is NOT the original version of Bunnicula, it's specifically designed for younger readers who are just starting their reading careers.

[debbicat *made of stardust* · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. I am a sucker for these characters. Nice, shortened version of Bunnicula with colorful illustrations.

[Lynette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe Bunnicula was originally a higher level chapter book, so I was glad to see a lower level chapter series come out with the same concept. The characters are funny and sarcastic.

[Earline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Ready-To-Read adaptation of the original story. Can't wait to read the other books in the series.

[melhara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute beginner reader story about a family who brings home a new pet bunny named Bunnicula, who happens to be a vampire bunny that drains the juice from vegetables (much to the horror of the family cat).

----------------------------------------------
Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away

[Lynda Austin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute book! It introduces Bunnicula, the rabbit the Monroe family finds at a Dracula movie. But Chester the cat and Harold the dog don't know what to think about this new addition to the family . . . he sleeps all day and wakes at night and soon the vegetables in the kitchen are all white and dried out.
This would be a great young kid suggestion when they want to read vampire books just like big brother or sister. This was a ready-to-read level 3 book with cute illustrations (Bunnicula is adorable, not scary).

[Noelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book because it was funny, it was exciting, it was about a bunny that comes home with a family that has a cat, two dogs, and the bunny is a vampire. He sucks vegetable juice instead of blood!

Noelle

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harold, the dog who lives with the Monroes: Toby and Pete and Mr. and Mrs. Monroe, and Chester the cat, tells the story of how Bunnicula became a part of the Monroe household. Harold thinks Bunnicula is just a cute bunny, but Chester thinks Bunnicula is a vampire.

[Nicoswan · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a funny book. Funny good and funny odd. The kids are always arguing and the adults aren't really adulting. Whatever, it was cute enough that we will read the next one.

[Perrilyn Pringle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good synopsis of the actual book lol

[Shireen Hakim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is always hilarious in any form.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Bunnicula books, and I read this one to preview it to read to my 1st graders and it’s great. 😊

[Star ☔️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This children's book is suspenseful and fun.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very, very cute. I love the personalities of the animals.

[107rinoNeko · Rating 4 out of 5]

かわいい。

[Tiffiny · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 10-yr-old son read this. He is on a Bunnicula kick!

[Chris Bernard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Because vampire bunnies are cool.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the vampire bunny and his doggy and kitty friends.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute tale of a mystery involving white vegetables and a mysterious rabbit.

[Horace Mann Family Reading Challenge · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is about a bunny who everybody thinks is bad, but he is really nice.

[Kathy Garner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very fun "mystery" about a new pet addition.

[Alexander Gabriel · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mom read this whole book to me and my sister in an afternoon.

[SETSS Readopoly]

Lexile Level: 540