Brave Squish Rabbit

In this follow-up to Squish Rabbit, the titular bunny—picture a white balloon animal with a chunky black outline—has a few fears, including storms and chickens. But when his squirrel friend, Twitch, goes missing, Squish faces his greatest fear of all: the dark. Battersby has gentle fun with Squish’s fears (“Squish worried that Twitch was trapped... in the dark... in a storm... with a chicken”) without invalidating or demeaning them. She creates expressive characters with minimalistic lines, and Squish’s world is a delightful collage of felt trees, giant chickens (made from yellow feathers), and torn-paper landscapes. Ages 3–5. Agent: Catherine Drayton, Inkwell Management. (Sept.)