Mona Awad

We Love You, Bunny 

 lovers might dislike this prequel/sequel (presequel?), i really do. oh but i had a fucking blast. i loved this more than 

 if only because samantha was a deeply irritating protagonist for me whereas the bunnies are so deliciously deranged, & aerius was delightful. awad's last novel, 

, fell very flat for me, & i kept my hopes low for 

, but i think this is by far her best writing. is the book a little long for what it is? sure. but i was gripped regardless. it was funny & sharp & so clever in its critique of the academy & of students. the section with the poets had me in stitches at times. i just really loved seeing this side of the cult of academia, which felt absent in the original because samantha was on the fringe of these groups (of course there's still value in that perspective of a desperate lonely student). i did enjoy 

 for what it was but this book gives me the story i think i always expected (and wanted!) when i picked up the first instalment.

 is the ambiguity of it. a lot of those open-ended questions and spaces for interpretation disappear with the events of 

. awad expands the lore and fills in a lot of gaps quite concretely, which may cause friction for people who loved the original 

for its unreal, uncertain equality. but as someone who found 

 just fine, and thought the fantasy elements felt strained at times, i like the explanations awad provides here. they ground the loose threads in the original that bothered me and develop more of what i wanted to see — especially the plot with the older writers. it's very important to me too see professors be just as unhinged as their students. no one who stays in academia is right in the head. though some reveals conflict with my preferred reading of samantha as suffering from schizophrenia, i don't mind too much. but it's understandable why diehard 

 skews and recontextualises the original. i get it. still, what a riot of a story. i truly loved it, bunny. 

rory

okay. i understand why a lot of bunny lovers might dislike this prequel/sequel (presequel?), i really do. oh but i had a fucking blast. i loved this more than bunny if only because samantha was a deeply irritating protagonist for me whereas the bunnies are so deliciously deranged, & aerius was delightful. awad's last novel, rouge, fell very flat for me, & i kept my hopes low for we love you, bunny, but i think this is by far her best writing. is the book a little long for what it is? sure. but i was gripped regardless. it was funny & sharp & so clever in its critique of the academy & of students. the section with the poets had me in stitches at times. i just really loved seeing this side of the cult of academia, which felt absent in the original because samantha was on the fringe of these groups (of course there's still value in that perspective of a desperate lonely student). i did enjoy bunny for what it was but this book gives me the story i think i always expected (and wanted!) when i picked up the first instalment.

i think what people love about bunny is the ambiguity of it. a lot of those open-ended questions and spaces for interpretation disappear with the events of we love you, bunny. awad expands the lore and fills in a lot of gaps quite concretely, which may cause friction for people who loved the original bunny for its unreal, uncertain equality. but as someone who found bunny just fine, and thought the fantasy elements felt strained at times, i like the explanations awad provides here. they ground the loose threads in the original that bothered me and develop more of what i wanted to see — especially the plot with the older writers. it's very important to me too see professors be just as unhinged as their students. no one who stays in academia is right in the head. though some reveals conflict with my preferred reading of samantha as suffering from schizophrenia, i don't mind too much. but it's understandable why diehard bunny fans might take issue with how we love you, bunny skews and recontextualises the original. i get it. still, what a riot of a story. i truly loved it, bunny. 

I loved bunny so much I am saddened by my reading experience with this book. I never want to think of this book ever again 

Claire Maguet

kind of bummed with this book, although hearing front the creature genuinely was great and gave a big vibe of Frankenstein which was exciting. Even with that the book dragged on and on 

We Love You, Bunny

Reviews

Highlights