Bunnicula Meets Edgar Allan Crow (Paperback)

by James Howe (Author), Eric Fortune (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: head crow, Miles Tanner, Edgar Allan Crow, Mister Buttons (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 4–7—Harold, the dog, has another humorous and slightly scary story to tell after M. T. Graves, the author of the best-selling "FleshCrawlers" series and Pete's favorite author, comes to visit the family. The analytical and paranoid cat, Chester, is certain that Graves will cause something bad to happen to one of the family pets, just like in his creepy books. The author certainly acts odd and melancholy when he arrives with his beloved pet, Edgar Allan Crow, on his shoulder. The entire family joins in to solve the mystery when Bunnicula the bunny disappears, and the results are so surprising that Howie, the puppy, is inspired to start writing books of his own. Patrick Mulvihill narrates all the human and animal characters in Patrick Howe's tale (S & S, 2006) with wonderfully different voices. Fans of the popular "Bunnicula" series will enjoy this charming and sometimes suspenseful story.—Teresa Wittmann, Westgate Elementary School, Edmonds, WA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist
Pete enters a contest and wins a school visit from his favorite author: mysterious M. T. Graves, who writes the FleshCrawlers series. Staying at the Monroes' house with his pet, Edgar Allan Crow, the eccentric writer has some strange requests and his odd behavior gives rise to misgivings among the household's suspicious dogs and conniving cat. Their determined efforts to save the family's pet rabbit, Bunnicula, from an undetermined threat give rise to this entertaining chapter book's dramatic and comical situations. The full-page, shaded pencil drawings are handsome and suitably quirky. An entertaining addition to the long-running Bunnicula series. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum; Reprint edition (August 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416914730
• ISBN-13: 978-1416914730
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #137,719 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Bun of Darkness is Back... , September 11, 2006

By	V.Fox (New Orleans, LA- Houston, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bunnicula Meets Edgar Allan Crow (Hardcover)

Its been twenty seven years since Bunnicula first hopped from the minds and pages of Deborah and James Howe's Bunnicula: A Rabbit- Tale of Mystery and into the popular lexicon. Merely mention the name Bunnicula to any thirty- something and you are bound to get a smile and a laugh as memories of Chester, Harold, Howie and the Bun of Darkness come flooding back. Finally, the rabbit with a V8 addiction is back; every bit as delightful as he was when he first appeared in 1979, and just in time for us to introduce him to our own children.

In the latest book, Pete Monroe has just won a writing contest, and his prize is his favorite author M.T. Graves, writer of the Fleshcrawler Series, coming to visit his school. M.T. Graves has some rather odd requests for his visit; he insists upon staying with the Monroe family, for one. Chester, the family cat, is suspicious of the writer's motives for the visit and, when he learns that something always happens to the pets in the Fleshcrawler books, he soon is seeing omens everywhere.

The voice of Harold, our faithful shaggy narrator, is just as humorous and engaging as he's always been while he guides us through the latest mystery under the Monroe's roof... what are the true motives of the mysterious horror writer M.T. Graves' visit to the Monroe household, and why his eerie fascination with Bunnicula? Why do bad things happen to the pets in his books? Could there be something unnatural afoot? Chester, the paranoid voice of supernatural conspiracy theories, seems to think so, and long- time fans of the Bunnicula series will delight in the feline's investigatory antics, and the inevitable chaos they cause. Howie, the wire- haired dachshund pup is also on- hand again to provide comic relief and to aid Chester in his investigations. All the characters still resonate as strongly on the pages as they did years ago, and, while the technology of the day has changed (as Chester utilizes computers in his evidence gathering) the spirit of the characters and the book remains the same; timeless. As Neil Gaiman says of Bunnicula, "Bunnicula is the kind of story that does not age, and in all probablility will never die. Or stay dead, anyway..."

Bunnicula himself remains as atonal in this book as he has in all those before it. The character of the rabbit himself still is only developed through the reactions of the other characters to him; we love Bunnicula through the eyes of Harold and his family. Bunnicula himself is still silent on all matters. He is the only main animal character that does not talk... or he was...

Meet Edgar Allan Crow, the seemingly eldrich companion of writer M.T. Graves. Chester believes him to be an ill omen, compounded by the large flock of crows that seems to take up residence on the Monroe property upon the arrival of the horror author. Chester waits on pins and needles for the crow to utter the word "Nevermore", at any moment, a' la Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven", yet the crow is strangely silent. It seems he has somehow lost his voice. Still, as the title sugests,there is good reason to suspect that this crow knows more than he is letting on...

The rich, accessable characters of the Bunniculaverse would be nothing without the humorous, suspenseful type of story we all have come to associate with the series, and fans will not be disappointed. The plot takes its twists and turns with the ease of a coaster on its tracks before arriving at its decidedly non- supernatural, yet eventful, conclusion. As with all the books, having read the prior stories is not a prerequisite to enjoy and become engrossed in Bunnicula's world, as any prior information needed to understand the tale is included neatly and with ease of narrative flow in this story. Any new reader to the Bunniculaverse will have no problem finding their way through the story, and will wish to explore the world more fully once finished~!

Only one question remains unanswered at the end of the book... will there be another? The book at the end references the Tales of the House of Bunnicula books; stories which are told by Howie instead of Harold and in which Bunnicula never appears. Without giving details away, the reader is left wondering not when but IF another Bunnicula book will ever grace our shelves. This reader remains hopeful that the Bunnicula series will continue for many more years.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Both newcomers and old fans of the series will appreciate., October 8, 2006

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bunnicula Meets Edgar Allan Crow (Hardcover)

Peter has just won a contest: the prize is a school visit from his idol and the author of the FleshCrawlers series. While Peter's excited, Chester the cat is suspicious: Graves dresses in black, has a silent black crow about him at all times, and Chester knows that in each of Graves' popular books, something bad always happens to the pet... humor again blends with the supernatural in a Bunnicula story both newcomers and old fans of the series will appreciate.

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, November 13, 2008

By	TeensReadToo.com "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

Pete, the eldest of the Monroe boys, has won an essay contest for describing why the Fleshcrawlers book series grosses him out the most, and now the author of the series, M.T. Graves, will be visiting his school. What's even more exciting is that, instead of staying at a hotel like he normally would, Mr. Graves has asked to stay with the Monroes, all so he could meet their most unusual pets.

The entire family works hard to prepare for their guest, especially Howie the puppy, who is as big a fan of the Fleshcrawlers series as Pete. Chester the cat, however, does not feel as excited about this as everyone else. He's convinced that M.T. Graves has some nasty things in store, since all of his stories involve changing animals into horrible things. Why else would he have made all of these strange requests, like having the vampire bunny, Bunnicula, stay in his room, and dressing-less salad left by his bed at night? Why did he specifically say he wanted to meet the pets?

A flock of crows blankets the Monroe house when their strange guest arrives, and it's all downhill from there. Is the author's corvine pet, Edgar Allan Crow, in league with the leader of the flock, and what does M.T. Graves plan to do with Bunnicula?

It's up to Chester, Harold, and Howie to stop them and save their friend.

I was surprised and sad to find that this is the last planned book in the BUNNICULA series. The final book manages to be just as enjoyable as the first--true to the characters and the tone of this long-loved series.

Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose