The Kind Bunny by Evelina Ruimy

A useful story about pride and learning with the cutest little critters

Hop loves school. He loves to learn, to be with friends, to read, and to count—but when Ruff, a puppy in class, says that school isn’t cool, Hop questions everything.

Should he really like school if other kids don’t? He experiences that all-too-familiar torment of wanting to fit in but also wanting to do the things you actually like to do. I’m reminded of Camilla Cream in A Bad Case of Stripes, not wanting to eat the lima beans because no one else did, but with The Kind Bunny, it’s with something every kid will encounter in school. The kids who infiltrate, influence, and change the way school is experienced. 

The book’s illustrator, Siski Kalla, brings this sweet woodland world to life with comfortable, kid-friendly illustrations. It’s a pleasure to look at, and my kids thought so too when I read it to them. Glued to the page. My oldest even started jumping up and down—a thing she does when she’s excited—when Hop was met with the dilemma of how he should respond to Ruff when he finally came back to school. It’s a story about listening to your very wise mother, believing in what you believe in, and standing up for yourself. A meaningful collection of themes for pretty much every kid.

“Don’t feel so blue, here’s what’s true—their words reflect on them and not on you.” 

Some of the rhymes are a little uneven, and despite the title, kindness doesn’t really play all too big of a role here. Sure, he handles standing up to Ruff with grace and gives Ruff his own happy ending, but it’s established that his “kindness gives him power” in a way that doesn’t feel exactly related to what’s happening here. A different title might not have brought this attention to it, but since readers could pick it up because of that, they’ll want to know that it’s more about pride in learning and staying true to yourself. 

The Kind Bunny will be a book my kids asked to re-read. The illustrations and world are friendly and bright, and the situation does feel genuinely emotional for little Hop. It’s a situation many kids will recognize at some point in their schooling lives. This  book could be a nice companion to others about starting school and the issues your little one might face along the way.