The Hot Cross Bunny

K-Gr 2–On the Isle of the Great Easter Bunny lives a small, very cross rabbit named Steve. He is not “egg-cited” about Easter, because he has been unsuccessful in growing any chocolate Easter eggs all year. “’It’s hop-less!’ Steve grumbled, his heart felt so squeezy. ‘This chocolate egg growing is meant to be easy.’” With encouragement from a chicken named Nugget, Steve continues trying and grows an enormous egg that hatches a dragon. Steve and Nugget follow the hungry dragon into the Real World, where it eats all the chocolate eggs, potentially ruining Easter for all the children. When they catch up with the dragon, who they discover is friendly, the creature poops out enough chocolate eggs to restore Easter. Steve ends up winning his coveted Golden Egg Cup, and all’s well that ends happily in this rhyming tale. Cheerful spring colors illustrate this romp; but though the rhyme reads well enough, the scatological humor may ruin chocolate eggs for readers of all ages.