Superbuns!: Kindness Is Her Superpower

by Diane Kredensor, Diane Kredensor (Illustrator)

Overview

For fans of Fred Rogers in Won’t You Be My Neighbor? and Be Kind, a little bunny, who dreams of being a superhero, proves to her know-it-all older sister that kindness really is a superpower in this “infectiously joyful” picture book (Booklist).

Some superheroes can leap tall buildings in a single bound, some can crawl up a wall, some grow wolf-sharp claws, and some have superhuman speed. And Superbuns? Her superpower is being kind. Super kind. She can’t help but be kind: watering a neighbor’s daisies; helping a friend cross the street; feeding a hungry goldfish.

Superbuns’s older sister Blossom is a super know-it-all who doesn’t believe kindness is a superpower. Not one bit. And all this kindness is slowing them down on their way to Grammy’s house, where a yummy carrot cobbler awaits. But the sisters are being followed by a little fox, and when Blossom learns the fox is not after their cobbler but is lost, she discovers kindness really is a superpower after all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781665939539
Publisher:	Aladdin
Publication date:	08/29/2023
Series:	Superbuns!
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	406,934
Product dimensions:	10.80(w) x 8.70(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Diane Kredensor is an Emmy Award–winning artist, director, and producer for her work on animated TV shows such as Pinky and the Brain, Clifford the Big Red Dog, and WordWorld. She runs Tricycle Films, where she has created, developed, and contributed to programs for Nickelodeon, Warner Bros., the Disney Channel, PBS, MTV, and the Sesame Workshop. Diane is also the author of the Superbuns picture book series. She happily lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her partner and their son. Visit her at DianeKredensor.com.

Diane Kredensor is an Emmy Award–winning artist, director, and producer for her work on animated TV shows such as Pinky and the Brain, Clifford the Big Red Dog, and WordWorld. She runs Tricycle Films, where she has created, developed, and contributed to programs for Nickelodeon, Warner Bros., the Disney Channel, PBS, MTV, and the Sesame Workshop. Diane is also the author of the Superbuns picture book series. She happily lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her partner and their son. Visit her at DianeKredensor.com.

Editorial Reviews

06/21/2019

PreS-Gr 1-Superbuns and her sister Blossom are on their way to Grandma's house with a piping-hot carrot cobbler. As the sisters make the journey, Superbuns helps her neighbors with their numerous problems. Blossom keeps telling Superbuns that kindness is not a superpower and other facts. When the sisters are approached by an unlikely neighbor for some help, Superbuns uses her kindness to help her sister learn about what superpowers really are. Kredensor has brought readers a plot that is both powerful and simple to follow. Each character is distinct in both personality and dialogue, their voices combining with an outside narrator to show the plot. The vocabulary is easy to understand, and the text is usually clear with some large text blocks used by Blossom to emphasize her knowledge. Expressive digital illustrations further emphasize character's personalities by highlighting the kindness of Superbuns and Blossom's knowledge. With the world of Superbuns brought to life, readers can also see the little details that show the importance of kindness and give some hints as to what might happen next. VERDICT Through the amazing power of Superbuns, Kredensor has succeeded in showing readers exactly what makes a real superhero. A great read-aloud story to help teach children the value of kindness and listening to others.-Margaret Kennelly, iSchool at Urbana-Champaign, IL

School Library Journal

2019-03-12
Rabbit sisters quibble over the utility of compassion.

The question of taxonomy is at the heart of this picture book. Clad in cape and leotard, Superbuns (nee Buns) is compelled to perform random acts of kindness, and she seems convinced that her "listening ears," "huge heart," and "big caring eyes" count as superpowers. Her know-it-all big sister, Blossom, a bespectacled cynic, is familiar with more-traditional abilities such as strength and speed, arguing that "Kind is kind, but it's not a superpower!" The climax results from another disagreement of category when, en route to Grammy's, Superbuns holds the door for a young fox, saying, "I noticed that you've been following us all day." Blossom panics, rightfully informing her sister that foxes are known to eat rabbits, but the caring pseudo-hero understands that in this world of anthropomorphized animals, the fox is in need of protection. Blossom is won over by the big-eyed predator's predicament and the opportunity to show off her knowledge of geography, ultimately conceding that "maybe being kind was kind of…super." The goofy, buck-toothed rabbits, set against an anodyne version of New York City, are cute, and there is a fizzy graphic-novel vibe to the illustrations, but the overall story comes across as cloying and contrived. Kids who identify with Superbuns will feel validated; less so the Blossoms in the audience.

A teaching text for those whose taste runs to the saccharine. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews