BUNNY SLOPES

A bunny asks readers to help manipulate the book so it can hit the slopes.

Before one can ski, one needs snow. Readers must shake the book—no, harder—to make the flakes fall, then tap the top to level out the mound that’s fallen on the white bunny with its red scarf and black skis. Children can guess what’s coming: a tilt so the rabbit can ski. But this bunny doesn’t want a bunny slope—tilt it more! It’s skiing all right, until the cliff that lines up perfectly with the gutter sends it sprawling. Turning the book 180 degrees catches it in a tree, and another 180-degree turn puts it back on the ground and ready for another try at that cliff. It masters that and manages to jump the first die-cut hole, but while it’s gloating, it misses the second and falls into…its den, where mom is waiting with some hot chocolate (and some for readers, too). Metabooks are all the rage, and to really stand out on this increasingly crowded shelf, authors must up the game of the master, Hervé Tullet of Press Here (2011) fame, though even Tullet has had some duds in this arena. Rueda’s tale doesn’t quite measure up, though her bunny is adorably expressive, her scenes are simple and easy-to-read, and that gutter-cliff is a masterstroke of design.

Young readers who are learning to ski may enjoy this bunny slope; others, head for a black diamond.