By Deborah Howe, James Howe
A family adopts a rabbit found at a Dracula movie, the cat decides it's a vampire, and the dog just wants everyone to calm down.
The Monroes come home from a Dracula movie with a little black-and-white rabbit someone left on a seat, and name him Bunnicula. Harold the dog thinks he's fine. Chester the cat, who reads a lot, notices things: the rabbit sleeps all day, the markings look like a cape, and the vegetables in the kitchen keep turning up white and drained, with two little fang holes. Chester is sure it's a vampire. Harold, telling the story, is the only one keeping his head.
It's a vampire story where nobody's ever in danger, because the vampire is a rabbit and the victims are salad. That makes it a good pick for a child who wants everything spooky about a Dracula story but would rather not lie awake after. Harold's a funny narrator, the chapters are short, and the joke works just as well on whoever's reading it aloud. If your child loves it, there are six more books.