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When we moved to Phoenixville a few months ago, we found our premises already occupied. Rabbits live in our backyard and, because ours is a residential area, we found them to be somewhat blase about our presence. They usually don't run away; they just stop nibbling grass and dandelions and stay put, whiskers twitching. Now that I've read Mr. and Mrs. Bunny--Detectives Extraordinaire, I doubt I'll ever be able to view rabbits as bland, innocuous creatures again. Who knew that's just their cover, that underneath rabbits are as varied and nuanced as we are!

Polly Horvath (or rather Mrs. Bunny) has written a fantastical novel in which a pair of fedora-sporting bunnies help a young girl find her missing parents. Madeline, the girl in need of assistance, lives in a commune on an island with her hippy dippy  parents. Horvath makes it clear from the start that Madeline is the responsible one in the trio. When her parents are kidnapped by a band of treacherous foxes, it's up to Madeline to rescue them. She does this with the help of Mr. and Mrs. Bunny, who have just recently decided to try their hand--er, paw--at detecting. (Madeline, it seems, has the knack of understanding the Rabbit language, as well as Marmot and Fox.)  

Their quest to get to the bottom of the mystery takes many twists and turns, as Madeline forges a relationship with the nurturing lagomorphs. Mr. and Mrs. Bunny are hysterical (and perhaps uncomfortably recognizable to some adult readers) as a long-married couple prone to bickering. I confess that in places the story became a tad too whimsical for my taste and I have no idea why Madeline wanted her clueless, childish parents back. However, these are small quibbles. Overall, Mr. and Mrs. Bunny--Detectives Extraordinaire is an amusing tour d'force that practically begs to be read aloud.

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny--Detectives Extraordinaire
by Polly Horvath
Schwartz & Wade, 256 pages
Published: February 2012

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