cover image Bunnicula Escapes!: A Pop-Up Adventure

Bunnicula Escapes!: A Pop-Up Adventure

James Howe. HarperFestival, $14.95 (12pp) ISBN 978-0-688-13212-5

The vampire bunny goes 3-D in this peppy pop-up. The Monroe family is sampling the attractions at the county fair while Harold the dog, Chester the cat, Howard the puppy and Bunnicula wait in the station wagon for the start of the pet show. When the reader opens the flap that represents the rear door of the car, however, Bunnicula springs from his cage, startling the other animals, who leap up from their resting places in the back seat. Determined to save the fair-goers from Bunnicula's nefarious ways, Chester spearheads a chase that the reader can join. A series of pull-tabs follows the animals as all of them (except Bunnicula) become the targets of pitchers at a ``dunk-em'' booth; goggle at their reflections in a hall of mirrors; ride through a spook house (here, Bunnicula can be found under a tombstone, leaping from the silk-lined casket of Dracula himself); zoom on a rollercoaster; and end up in a magician's act. Text and pop-ups are unusually well integrated, each element advancing the story line. A blue-ribbon presentation. Ages 4-up. (Sept.)