Book Description
for Knuffle Bunny Free by Mo Willems
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
In the third volume about Trixie and her favorite stuffed toy, the now-famous Knuffle Bunny accompanies the family on a transnational plane ride to visit grandparents living in Holland. Trixie only realizes that something’s missing once she’s sitting in Oma’s garden: She left Knuffle Bunny on the airplane. The adults in Trixie’s world do the usual things adults do to try to console a child who’s lost a favorite thing: Her dad calls the airline (the plane has already left for China) and her Oma buys her a new stuffed rabbit (not even close). Eventually, it’s Trixie herself who is able to reach acceptance by imagining Knuffle Bunny as a world traveler visiting far-off places she can only dream of. Although the resolution (finding Knuffle Bunny in the seat pocket on the returning plane) stretches credulity, it’s a satisfying ending, with Trixie, realizing she can do without her toy, offering it to the crying child sitting behind them. Mo Willems uses the same illustrative technique—color cartoon drawings superimposed onto black-and-white photographic backgrounds—found in other books about Trixie and her cherished bunny. (Ages 3–6)
CCBC Choices 2011. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2011. Used with permission.