cover image B, My Name Is Bunny

B, My Name Is Bunny

Norma Fox Mazer. Scholastic, $12.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-590-40930-8

Bunny hates her name. So when she finds herself sitting next to a boy named James at a rock concert, she tells him her name is Emily. But that's the name of Bunny's best friendhow can Bunny tell Emily what she's done? And if Emily doesn't know, Bunny can't introduce her to James, who may be her first boyfriend (even though he's a lot older than she is). All of this may sound inane, but Mazer pulls it off. She takes the silliness of being 13 and gives it a fresh, lively appealpeppered, as it is, with a serious subplot about a baseball-loving grandmother who suffers a stroke and must come to live with Bunny's family. James does back off when he finds out just how young Bunny is, but not before the real Emily shows what best friends are for and solemnly introduces herself to himas Bunny. Funnyand fun. (11-13)