BookBunnies

Caramel reviews Max, a Little Axolotl by Joey Spiotto

Today Caramel reviews a cute book by Joey Spiotto, Max, a Little Axolotl, published first in 2025. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, this book must have been a great find for you, because you love axolotls, right?

Caramel: Yeah, it was and I do.

S: So tell me a bit about it then.

C: So in the beginning Max, who is, as stated by the title, a little axolotl, is living in a lake in Mexico when all of a sudden, humans show up and start polluting and ruining the environment. Then a human captures Max and puts him in a little tank, then takes him to an aquarium, called the Aquarium of the Bay. There, there are other water animals. And Max makes friends.

S: Cool story!

C: Yeah! The other animals in the aquarium try to play a ball game with Max, but he doesn’t know how to play the game. They lose the ball in a cave, in which they believe there to be a sea monster.

S: Ooh, so that sounds exciting! I am guessing nothing too terrible happens though, I mean other than Max’s original home being polluted…

C: Yeah, what they think is a sea monster is just—-

S: Ooh, let us not give away all the details!

C: Okay, I guess that makes sense.

S: Did you know that Lake Xochimilco actually exists? Wikipedia says that it is the last remaining natural habitat of the axolotl.

C: No, I didn’t. But that’s really sad.

S: Yes. There are a lot of endangered animals out there. It is really sad.

C: And axolotls are so cute! And my other favorite animals, the pangolin, are also endangered. It is just not fair. Why are all the cute animals, other than us, of course, endangered?

S: I don’t know. But of course, even if they were not cute, it would be sad, right?

C: Yes, of course, but it does seem to be most of the cute ones, just saying.

Caramel is reading Max, a Little Axolotl by Joey Spiotto. — Caramel is reading *Max, a Little Axolotl* by Joey Spiotto.

S: So what did you think of the drawings of the book?

C: They were all very cute and very very colorful.

S: Somehow I was reminded of some of your other favorite books in this genre. I am thinking of the Narwhal and Jelly books. The pictures are cute, the characters are water-based animals who are friends, and there are also some facts in the book, too.

C: Yeah, I can see that! But this one has more kawaii aspects, like the artist gave Max shiny big eyes and colorful spots and such, whereas Narwhal and Jelly don’t have such things; they are in some ways more simple.

S: Yeah, I see what you mean. What did you think of the facts at the end?

C: They were actually very informative.

S: I liked how he titled that section “Facts-olotl”..

C: Yeah, me too. It was funny! The title is also funny that way. I mean, try saying “Max a Little Axolotl”. It rhymes!

S: Yes! I had not noticed that! How cool is that?

C: Very.

S: Okay, so did you learn anything new? Because I know you already know a lot about a lot of things.

C: Yeah, I did. In fact, did you know that axolotls are actually amphibious, meaning they could live on land, but they spend their whole lives underwater?

S: That is so weird! And no, I did not know that. Thank you for teaching me Caramel.

C: You’re welcome!

S: Okay, so this might be a good time to end this review. What would you like to tell our readers Caramel?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Max, a Little Axolotl by Joey Spiotto and recommends this to other young bunnies who love animals. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Max, a Little Axolotl* by Joey Spiotto and recommends this to other young bunnies who love animals.

Marshmallow reviews Everything Here is Mine by Nicole Hollander

Today Marshmallow reviews Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior. Originally published in 1992, this is a book of comic strips by the amazing cartoonist Nicole Hollander, whose daily comic strip Sylvia was enjoyed by many; she passed away in April 2026.

Marshmallow reviews Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior by Nicole Hollander. — Marshmallow reviews *Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior* by Nicole Hollander.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like cats and / or cartoons, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Cats are from space. Specifically, according to Hollander, they are from the planet Hsif. Originally, they arrived during the time of the pyramids and began investigating Earth. Unfortunately, due to a civil war on their home planet, the main cat force had to leave behind several individuals. Budget cats later on prevented return missions so some of the cats were left stranded on our world. This is why cats spit up hairballs; it is an S.O.S. signal. This is merely the beginning of numerous new revelations and lessons about the cat species that you can find in Nicole Hollander’s Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior.

As you can tell from the title, this book does honestly show how cats dominate their households. In sections labeled by related topics, Hollander gives us insight into what cats like and do not like. The sections are as follows: Cats in Space; Give Me That Wet Food, Baby; Fly Me to the Moon; Cats Who Dress Up; Don’t Lick That Cat; Oh, De Toilette; Slow Dancing With Your Cat; In the Heat of the Night; Vetnophobia; Cats and the Law; After You’re Gone; and more. In each, there are plenty of cartoons like the “Dear Cat Lady,” and “Misconceptions About Cats” columns. These provide some extra humor in what is already a very entertaining book!

Marshmallow is reading Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior by Nicole Hollander. — Marshmallow is reading *Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior* by Nicole Hollander.

Marshmallow’s Review: I thought Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior was a very funny book. I do not know any cats very well myself, but this definitely furthers a lot of general cultural stereotypes for cats. On the back of the book we meet a cat saying “We rule, but we’re fair…unless you serve us the wrong kind of food.” For many cat owners (or rather cat servants), this might strike a familiar chord. The cartoons are definitely amusing to any and all animals and animal lovers though. I particularly liked the “Heartbreaking Complaints of Cats” section that showed up every now and then. In those, a cat describes its issues to a disembodied voice outside of the panel–which I presume is meant to represent a therapist.

Overall, Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior is a very fun book that is relatively lighthearted and light to read. It is not very long (less than 140 pages) and has plenty of funny pictures. All bunnies of all ages would enjoy this book, so I would highly recommend reading it if you have the time! It will make you smile even if you might not (yet) be a cat person.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior by Nicole Hollander 100%. — Marshmallow rates *Everything Here is Mine: An Unhelpful Guide to Cat Behavior* by Nicole Hollander 100%.

Caramel reviews Wampum Belts of the Iroquois by Tehanetorens

Today Caramel reviews Wampum Belts of the Iroquois, a book first published in 1999 by Tehanetorens. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: Today you are reviewing a nonfiction book. It has been a while since you last reviewed a nonfiction book, no?

Caramel: Not really. I reviewed America As It Happened: A Moment-by-Moment Journey Through Time, From Prehistory to the Present Day only a couple weeks ago, and that was nonfiction.

S: True. Okay, so this book is also nonfiction. Tell me a bit about what it is about.

C: It’s about the wampum belts, which denote or commemorate laws, treaties and commitments. The Iroquois people make them and wear them, and the book talks about a lot of different examples of these belts.

S: That sounds really interesting. Tell me more.

C: The book is about a school project. The person who wrote the book is the teacher, and his students at the Onkwehonwe Neha School worked with beads and other traditional materials to make replicas of important wampum belts. The book has a lot of different types of these belts. And the student who made each belt poses with the belt so you can see them too. They are really cool. I only wish the pictures were in color.

S: But even though they are in black and white, the pictures already show how many different types of wampum belts there are, right?

C: Yes. And for each belt, besides the photo of the child who made the belt, there is a lot of information about the belt. For example there is a belt called the Hiawatha or the ayonwatha belt, which shows the union between five nations (the five tribes making up the Iroquois), and looks like a wide dark belt with two white squares on either side of either a heart or a tree, which represents one of each nation, and they are connected by a line that symbolizes their union. It is neat how it symbolizes the five nations coming together.

S: I know that in a lot of traditional societies where rugs and carpets are woven, the people who weave them put in a lot of information into their work. These belts remind me of that kind of a tradition, a way to memorialize important events in objects that can also be used.

C: Yes, they are practical and useful but also beautiful. I really liked them.

Caramel is reading Wampum Belts of the Iroquois by Tehanetorens. — Caramel is reading *Wampum Belts of the Iroquois* by Tehanetorens.

S: Also these specific belts were able to connect the students who made them with their traditions and histories. It must have been a very engaging school project.

C: Yes, it is kind of like the ofrenda I made at school for my maternal grandfather. It was a way for me to learn more about him, because you know, I never met him, and when I was making it, you told me a lot more stories about him.

S: Yes, kind of like that. Of course that was more about your personal history, rather than the history of a whole people, but still you are right that it hopefully allowed you to connect a bit more deeply with someone from your past.

C: Yes.

S: So Caramel, what made you want to review this book?

C: You know I love fact-full books and this one is definitely full of facts. And it has lots of interesting pictures. And the kids holding their belts look so serious and proud, it is really neat to look at them. So I wanted to tell other young bunnies about it because the book is really neat.

S: That is fair.

C: There are also a lot of hand-drawn pictures in there, and those are cool too. Almost every page has some picture and so the book is really easy to read.

S: Yes, the pictures make it so engaging, you are right.

C: Of course.

S: Okay, Caramel, so maybe this is a good time to wrap up the review.

C: Again it is a school night, so I agree.

S: So let us do just that. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Wampum Belts of the Iroquois by Tehanetorens and learning about this interesting tradition of the Iroquois. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Wampum Belts of the Iroquois* by Tehanetorens and learning about this interesting tradition of the Iroquois.

Marshmallow reviews The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud

Today Marshmallow reviews The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud, first published in 2025.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like cartoons, art, or graphic novels, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Makayla’s mind is always overflowing with new ideas for stories but Howard is the one who keeps passing her doodles during math class. One day, after they finally get caught by their algebra teacher, they decide to make their own comic book. When they meet up at their middle school’s library after school, Makayla reveals her master plan: they are going to form a club for the other students in their school who want to be cartoonists too. With the help of the kind librarian, they print out their posters and wait for the next day to see if anyone shows up.

Luckily, someone does! Art is an agender artist who loves “making mistakes” and can’t wait to make them in another new forum. The three of them become friends quickly and can’t wait to start making comic books. Unfortunately, they are extremely puzzled and ask the librarian what the “right” way to proceed is. To their surprise, she informs them that there is no right way at all. Through this newfound freedom, they proceed to produce numerous silly but fun short comics.

They also are able to welcome in a new member: Lynda. She’d been in the library since day one, drawing quietly in a corner, but had been too nervous to show anyone her art. Since she focused so heavily on the mistakes she made, she was too scared to show any part of her art at all.

As the story progresses, each of the characters’ artistic struggles are revealed and remediated through a group effort. The Cartoonists Club is a heartwarming, inspiring story perfect for any and all young artists interested in drawing. It is the ideal guide for young bunnies looking to find and create communities much like the one in this book!

Marshmallow is reading The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud. — Marshmallow is reading *The Cartoonists Club* by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud.

Marshmallow’s Review: I think The Cartoonists Club is a very cute book! The characters’ interest in comics and their making is a bit infectious in fact. I’ve always appreciated graphic novels and the like, but reading The Cartoonists Club has made me appreciate how much of an art they really are.

I really liked how different aspects of the art were highlighted in different chapters. In almost every section, the librarian or one of the club members teaches the club and the reader about how to perfect another aspect of cartoons. I especially liked the section that talked about the magic of the blank page. It was simple yet inspiring in a way that recalls the childlike awe too many of us lose as we grow older.

I think The Cartoonists Club is a perfect book for all young bunnies who love drawing or reading or learning! And while it might at first seem too childish for those older than twelve, I think there is still a lot of value in reading it. As a bunny who is no longer in middle school, reading The Cartoonists Club was still very inspiring and made me remember how important art is to me and to us as bunnies / humans. It is a relatively easy book to read and you can read it pretty quickly. But just because it is short and sweet doesn’t mean that its story isn’t significant; sometimes remembering that ‘childish’ sense of imagination is just what you need to recall that same passion and joyful outlook on life!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud 100%. — Marshmallow rates *The Cartoonists Club* by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud 100%.