Mr. and Mrs. Bunny—Detectives Extraordinaire!

In Horvath’s quirky chapter book, when fifth-grader Madeline’s parents are kidnapped by conniving foxes, she enlists Mr. and Mrs. Bunny—who decide to become detectives in part because they get to wear fedoras—to track them down. Horvath, who also reads this audio edition, often narrates in an extremely high-pitched voice that some listeners may quickly find cloying. Additionally, Horvath fails to create distinctive voices for her characters, instead attempting to differentiate them by varied pacing. This works when Madeline talks with her listless parents, or when the Bunnies interrogate a drunken Marmot, but during moments when multiple characters are chattering, it’s difficult to understand who’s speaking to whom. Ages 8–12. A Schwartz & Wade hardcover. (Feb.)