Review By: Rose Palmisano
Published: 2025
Genre(s): Realistic Fiction, Coming of Age, Family, Friendship, Middle Grade
Audience: Grades 5–8
Content Warnings: Adoption, Anxiety
Goodreads Link: The Metamorphosis of Bunny Baxter
Summary:
Bunny Baxter thinks nothing could be worse than starting seventh grade at a school where she knows no one. But after her first day, she realizes things can actually get much worse. If Bunny Baxter were an insect, she’d have so many ways to slip through seventh grade unnoticed. But she’s tall instead of tiny, has flaming red Medusa hair instead of camouflage, and she suffers from social anxiety, which makes it hard to be part of a swarm. Worst of all, she’s been redistricted to a new middle school away from her best friend who she could always hide behind when her anxiety got the best of her.
The first day at E.D. Britt Middle School does not go well. Bunny trips on the steps, falls into the cutest boy in the school, and causes a kid domino pile-up. At lunch, she unintentionally causes an uproar in the cafeteria, which lands her and another girl in the principal’s office. Bunny decides there is only one option: to get expelled so she can transfer to the school her best friend attends.
She soon discovers that it isn’t that hard to get in trouble—don’t turn in your homework, walk around the track instead of run in P.E., pretend you deliberately hit someone with a badminton birdie. What isn’t so easy for Bunny is realizing she now has a reputation as a troublemaker. And even more confusing, when it looks like her plan to get expelled might work, she’s no longer sure what to do. The Metamorphosis of Bunny Baxter is a heartfelt coming of age story about an insect-loving girl who is learning to grow into herself—quirks and all.
Review:
Bunny Baxter is a seventh grader who loves her bugs, dog, adoptive family, and BFF. Life is going pretty well until her school was redistricted and she is put in a middle school different from her best friend. Her first day at her new school goes horribly. She has an awkward run in with the cutest guy at school, her precious cicada shell is flung into a girl’s mac and cheese at lunch, and she meets a mean girl. She gets the reputation as being the “weird bug girl.” Bunny is so miserable and anxious that she plans to behave badly on purpose so she can get expelled and go back to her old school. Her journey to being kicked out does not go according to plan and Bunny learns to be herself.
This book is for those who enjoy a coming of age story with a protagonist who changes throughout. Like a butterfly, Bunny evolves and comes out of her cocoon in a beautiful way. This book is similar to Gordon Korman’s Old School as both protagonists try to get expelled from school, but realize in the end that may not be the best way forward. This book has a strong message for its readers that the only way to grow is by addressing discomfort head on. I would recommend this book to anyone who feels like an outsider and those still learning how to manage their anxiety. This is a sweet read that we can all relate to!
