Rabbits

Too Many Rabbits This edition published in 2023 by Red Comet Press, LLC, Brooklyn, NY First published as Troppi Conigli Original Italian text by Davide Calì Illustrations by Emanuele Benetti © 2021 Kite Edizioni S.r.l, Padova, Italy English translation © 2023 Red Comet Press, LLC Translated by Angus Yuen-Killick All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022938262 ISBN (HB): 978-1-63655-054-1 ISBN (Ebook): 978-1-63655-055-8 22 23 24 25 21 26 TLF 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Manufactured in China

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After a month of continually asking, Owen and Zoey finally got Dad to take them to the pet store to get a little pet rabbit.

But once they arrived, he saw there was a special offer.

Two for the price of one?

Dad thought it seemed a great deal.

Now tell me, do you know what a rabbit does?

It eats, gnaws at the furniture, hops all the time, and leaves little chocolate eggs all over the place.

And do you know what two rabbits do?

They eat, gnaw at the furniture, hop all the time, and leave little chocolate eggs all over the place.

And if there’s a male and a female, they make a ton of little rabbits!

The baby rabbits grow quickly, and then they make their own little rabbits.

And those little rabbits in time make more little rabbits.

Before long, the rabbits number two hundred and ten and you do not understand how there can be so many.

So, Dad decides to give some away.

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they gave to a juggler.

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they put through the neighbor’s mailbox.

They left

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in the care of a street musician . . .

4

5

in a stroller at the park . . .

they sent to a distant aunt.

6

Then they left at the door of another neighbor . . .

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in the neighbor’s neighbor’s garden.

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they put in the cart of a lady at the supermarket . . .

and they hung

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on the Christmas tree there, too.

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Then they set in place of pins at the bowling alley.

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they found a place on the golf course . . .

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and another

in a botanical garden.

They left

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among the toys in a big department store.

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They pretended to forget in the tub full of colored balls.

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Before leaving, they left another in the ladies’ underwear department.

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For they found a place at the Pop Art Museum . . .

and they hid

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in a magician’s hat.

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Then they lost gambling at the casino.

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They made roll around like balls on a tennis court not far from there.

They let the last

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simply go with the wind.

Only when they were done did they realize all the rabbits were gone.

“Oh no, Daddy! We meant to keep one for ourselves,” said the children.

“You are right” said dad, “but what would you say to a ferret instead?”

So, they went back to the pet store with the intention of buying one.

But once they got there, they saw there was a special offer . . .

Davide Calì is a Swiss-born Italian writer of children’s books and graphic novels. He has published over one hundred books and received numerous awards. He lives in Genoa, Italy.

Emanuele Benetti is an educator with a passion for drawing and illustration, for which he has won multiple awards. He lives and works in Trentino, Italy.

ISBN 978-1-63655-054-1

51799

9 781636 550541 RedCometPress.com Cover illustrations © Emanuele Benetti Printed in China

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