Little Bunny Foo-Foo

This story is called Little Bunny Foo-Foo written by Madeline Walton-Hadlock and based on the traditional children’s song of the same name. This is a LibraryCall recording. Little Bunny Foo-Foo was always getting into mischief. When his grandma told him to brush his teeth, he got distracted and used his toothbrush to comb his gray ears instead. At the dinner table, he forgot his manners. He slurped his carrot soup and did not stay in his seat. It was hard to sit still when his body felt so very bouncy. He loved to look at the rainbow of colors in his grandma’s spring garden, but he couldn’t help but nibble at her prized tulips and daffodils. They just looked so tasty. One day, Little Bunny Foo-Foo was hopping through the forest near his home when he saw a field mouse picking wild strawberries in a sunny spot at the edge of the woods. Spring strawberries! Little Bunny Foo-Foo could almost taste them– they’d be sweet and a little bit tart, and their tiny seeds would get stuck between his teeth. He hopped over to the berry patch and began to bite the fruit directly off the plant, gobbling them up as quickly as he could. He was worried he might not get his fair share with the field mouse nearby. “Hey!” said the field mouse. “Stop eating all my berries!” “These aren’t your berries,” said Little Bunny Foo-Foo, his cheeks full of fruit. “But I found them first, and you’re eating them all up.” “Am not!” “Are so!” “Am not!” “Are so!” Little Bunny Foo-Foo was now feeling very angry at the field mouse. He didn’t know what to say next, so he scooped up that little field mouse and bopped him on the head. “Ow!” said the field mouse, and he scurried away crying. Now, Little Bunny Foo-Foo’s grandma had been working in her garden nearby. She heard the commotion between her grandson and the field mouse, and she looked up just in time to see Little Bunny Foo-Foo do the head bopping. “That bunny could stand to learn a lesson or two,” Grandma muttered. Looking around her garden, a thought came to her. She quickly wrapped herself from head to foot in spring flowers and attached two large calla lily leaves to her back like green fairy wings. Looking not at all like herself, she hopped over to Little Bunny Foo-Foo in the strawberry patch. “Little Bunny Foo-Foo!” she said in a fairy-like voice. “I don’t want to see you scooping up the field mice and bopping them on the head.” Little Bunny Foo-Foo jumped in surprise. Strawberry juice dripped from his mouth as he asked, “Who are you?” “I am the Good Fairy. It is my job to make sure all the woodland creatures treat each other with kindness.” “But the field mouse said these berries were his! They belong to everyone!” “And that didn’t feel fair?” “No!” “Did you try talking to the field mouse?” “No.” “What did you do?” asked the fairy. “I got angry and bopped him on the head,” Little Bunny Foo-Foo admitted. “I will give you two more chances,” said the fairy. “If you can’t treat the field mouse with kindness, I will have to turn you into a goon.” And the fairy bounced away. “What a strange fairy,” thought Little Bunny Foo-Foo. “She reminds me of someone.” He thought some more. “I don’t want to be a goon, and I also didn’t like making the field mouse cry. I’ll try talking to him tomorrow.” The next morning, Little Bunny Foo-Foo woke up thinking about those ripe, red strawberries. He bounced out of bed and hopped back down to the berry patch at the edge of the forest. Sure enough, the field mouse was already there chewing away. “Hello,” said Little Bunny Foo-Foo. “Go away,” said the field mouse. “You’re mean.” Little Bunny Foo-Foo could already feel himself starting to get mad. He tried to do what the Good Fairy suggested and asked, “Maybe we could share the berries?” “No! I found these first. Go away!” Little Bunny Foo-Foo’s ears began to burn. His whiskers felt prickly, and he felt a small explosion starting to form in his throat. “Please. Share. The. Berries,” Little Bunny Foo-Foo said angrily. “Nope,” said the field mouse. That was it. Little Bunny Foo-Foo couldn’t help himself. He scooped up that rude little mouse and… BOP! “Owwwwwwwwwww!” said the field mouse, holding his head. He scurried away crying again. Well, Little Bunny Foo-Foo’s grandma had been keeping an eye on this situation from her garden. She sighed and pulled on her fairy costume. She bounced out to the berry patch and said with a fairy-like voice, “Little Bunny Foo-Foo. I said I don’t want to see you scooping up the field mice and bopping them on the head!” “Good Fairy! I… was just patting him on the head?” “Then why did he run away crying?” Little Bunny Foo-Foo’s ears drooped. “I’m sorry. He just made me feel so MAD. He won’t share.” “Little Bunny Foo-Foo, it’s up to you to keep your cool. I will give you one more chance to treat others kindly. If you bop that field mouse on the head again, I’m afraid I will have to turn you into a goon.” The fairy gave him a stern look before bouncing away. “That fairy really reminds me of someone,” muttered Little Bunny Foo-Foo. The next day, he was determined not to do any more head bopping. He was going to avoid the strawberry patch altogether. Yom, yom, yom. But there was the field mouse, snacking away noisily on those juicy, red berries. Little Bunny Foo-Foo had to have some! He approached the berry patch cautiously, ready to be nice to the mouse. “Ahem. Hello, dear field mouse,” said Little Bunny Foo-Foo. “You again?! Go away, you head-bopper-hopper!” Little Bunny Foo-Foo took a deep breath. “I’m sorry I keep bopping you on the head.” “Humph.” “I SAID, I’m sorry I keep bopping you on the head! Now you say, ‘I forgive you.”” “Humph.” The field mouse kept chewing. “I SAID, I’m sorry I keep bopping you on the head!!! Do you have anything to say to me?” “Go away.” Little Bunny Foo-Foo felt something start to boil deep in his belly. The heat bubbled up to his head, and before he knew it, he could feel steam coming out of his ears, just like his grandma’s tea kettle when it began to hiss and sputter. “Oh… YOU MAKE ME SO MAD!!!” he yelled, scooping up the field mouse and bopping him on the head. And of course, the field mouse scurried away crying once again. Little Bunny Foo-Foo looked around nervously, hoping the Good Fairy hadn’t seen him lose his temper. No such luck. The Good Fairy came hopping along again. “Oh, Little Bunny Foo-Foo, I have given you three chances, and that was your third and final bop. You have made your choice. I’m sorry to say that I must now turn you into a goon.” The Good Fairy reached into her pouch, took a handful of magic fairy dust, and Poof! The air was full of green smoke and the Good Fairy was gone. Little Bunny Foo-Foo, who thought he must now be Little Goon Foo-Foo, coughed and gave a quiet sob. He got up and started to hop home slowly. On his way, he passed a small pond and stopped to look at his reflection in the water. Rather than seeing a gray bunny with perky ears looking back at him, he saw a green creature with matted fur and soft droopy horns. Even though he was now a goon, he vowed to never lose his temper again. Back at home, his grandma put away her costume and her jar of fairy dust, which was actually powdered spinach, and began to make a pot of tea to share with her grand-goon when he got home. This was Little Bunny Foo-Foo by Madeline Walton-Hadlock. We hope you enjoyed this LibraryCall recording.