Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover

There sure are a lot of leveled readers about odd couple friendships. I guess kids this age are learning how to be a good friend, just as the characters in the books are learning. In this one rabbit needs to learn that there are fun things to do that he didn't put on the list himself, and robot needs to communicate his needs more carefully. Pretty darn cute.

This is a cute chapter book with controlled vocabulary that allows children to realize that you don't have to be exactly alike to be friends. When Rabbit invites Robot over for a sleepover, he has an agenda for the night. Robot is not super thrilled with the rigid schedule, as he prefers to do things differently, but ultimately each chapter's dilemmas are solved by Robot offering a compromise. This is a gentle way to introduce differences to children and to also offer them some problem solving skills.

A fun read for kids and entertaining enough for adults to not fall asleep (you know what I mean if you're dredging through early readers with your child). :)

Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover is another CeCe Bell book that I have fallen in love with. The title explains it all- the story follows the grumpy and structured Rabbit and his calmer friend Robot as they have a sleepover! Like the rest of her books, both characters are well developed. Robot is clearly passive- he doesn't get loud and tell Rabbit what he wants to do until later in the story. Rabbit is high strung, and a little self centered; he doesn't plan for what Robot wants to do. The book is also laced with humor, like when robot's battery runs down and Rabbit is trying to diagnose the issue. The book is divided into chapters despite it not being particularly long. This could appeal to kids who love reading more "Grown up"books. show more The text is accompanied by simple illustrations that enhance the story, especially when they appear in the middle of the page and text. The plot is easy to follow and not overly difficult because it is written in a language that many kids can understand. show less

Rabbit is kind of a grumpy boss in this story. It made me think of myself when I was young. I used to invite my friends over and tell them what we were going to do, just like Rabbit! Poor Robot was trying to have fun and relax but Rabbit is a little bit of a stick in the mud. I do like how they were able to find compromise in the end. The artwork is cute and goes well with the story.

PSC REVIEW: What is it about two mismatched best friends that make them so endearing? You’ll meet the latest odd couple in this early reader. When Rabbit invites his robot friend over he has a list of what they’ll do at the sleepover. Robot sees things a little differently, though. Vegetable pizza is fine for a rabbit, but Robot prefers nuts and bolts on his…so tidy Rabbit’s kitchen gets demolished as the table and chairs are dismantled for Robot’s meal. Kids will need to watch the pictures carefully for detail are hidden in them. When Rabbit loses the remote control to the TV Robot helps him find it with a mirror. Poor Rabbit had it stuck in his ear all along. Picture clues are really important when Robot loses his energy and show more slowly spits out a message. “Bat” has Rabbit looking for a bat. “Batter” has him making a cake. It’s not until the whole message appears that rabbit realizes Robot needs new batteries. Fun reading with some challenging words like “humorous” and “reflection” will appeal to advanced early readers show less

Rabbit and Robot are ridiculous together! This book is great for beginner readers as the chapters are short and the words are big. The pictures are crisp and well drawn for the context of the story.