The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale – book review

May 13, 2016
Joe

"The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde" by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale.
“The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde” by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale.
The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde is the third installment in Shannon and Dean Hale’s The Princess in Black series of adventure stories for the youngsters among us. In this one, Princess Magnolia is presented with a conundrum: what do you do if the monsters you’re supposed to fight are absolutely adorable? Can she accept the awwwww-ful truth in time to save her kingdom and be back in town in time to meet Princess Sneezewort for tea?

Once again, LeUyen Pham provides many cute and fun illustrations to help the Princess on her way. Her simple—yet expressive—art engages the reader immediately, carrying to new heights the story being told by the Hales. This book wouldn’t be half as fun without the illustrations.

The Hales continue to tell a fun tale. Despite being written for the younger crowd, The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde will still be enjoyable and fun to read out loud to your young ones. Especially out loud, in fact. With the bright and colorful illustrations, and the quirky humor in the story, this book can bring a whole new level of fun to reading time.

If there is one fault to the book, it is that the story is very basic. This is not one of Shannon’s young adult novels, and there is not enough space to really develop the story to the same degree as in a regular novel. However, this is a great introduction for the younger crowd to the unique brand of humor which is found throughout all of her books. If you come into this book (or any of the books in the series) expecting deepness, you will be disappointed.

That said, I have enjoyed the series, and I look forward to the next book coming out in a few months. Knowing Shannon a little bit, I can just see her acting out the story while writing it with Dean. The Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde is fun, light entertainment for all ages of children, and I recommend it to anyone who is—figuratively or literally—young at heart.

Release Date: February 9, 2016 (USA)
ISBNs: 0763665134 (9780763665135)
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Language: English

MySF Rating: Four point zero stars
Family Friendliness: 100%

Content:

Alcohol/Drugs: 0
Language: 0
Nudity: 0
Sexuality: 0
Violence: 1 (cute battles, nothing scary or graphic)