Cartoon bunny attempts suicide, real-life children follow suit
Filed under: In The News
A 12-year-old from Shanghai tragically committed suicide this week -- but one bookstore isn't blaming bad parents, exam pressure, or playgrounds bullies. Instead they're pointing the finger at a children's literature.
"Bunny Suicides," a cartoon book meant to be "darkly humorous," depicts the trials and tribulations of a quadruped with a death wish -- a cute little bunny that tries to end his life using a guillotine, a jet engine, a toaster, and a myriad of other offbeat mechanisms for offing himself.
Sure it's gruesome, but is it really inciting suicide? The city has seen a rash of attempts by young people this past week, and while some local stores claim the book is clearly a joke (albeit a morbid one), Bookuu Book City yanked it from their shelves -- worried that it might give kids ideas they could try at home. Bookuu's owners have replaced the darkly comedic comic with self-help books aimed at teens with depression and other mental problems.
Seems like kids pushed to suicide by a hand-drawn rabbit might have deeper issues worth addressing, but that doesn't make the subject matter any easier to swallow. Is "Bunny Suicides" over the line?












ReaderComments (Page 5 of 6)
9-13-2008 @ 12:57AM
Cara said...I've worked with teens and even some of them do not have a sense that suicide attempts can really lead to death. They also trust that adults will not tell them to do, or write snarkily about, things that will truly harm them.
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9-13-2008 @ 12:55AM
janet said...People now a days have only the media to blame instead of themselves. If you are involved in your child's life and have a good influence with them they will not pay attention to whats out there because they will know its not a right thing to do. Now there are just some kids you cannot help because maybe they do have real issues but to blame the media is an easy way out. If your going to kill yourself its because you feel like no one in your life cares about you or something bad happened. Your not going to want to do it just because some one sings or writes about it. It is in you before and parents need to realize that before jumping to conclusions that oh this rock star killed my kid or this book did it, all they want is to get them out of all the money they can so they can use money to cover for their loss.
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9-13-2008 @ 12:57AM
jaguignon said...just like Dar said there are many more things to laugh about in life than to read crap that will make you feel that your self worth is so low that life isn't worth living! With all the troubled kids, drugs, sex before any commitment, and some rotten abusive parents thrown in to round things off, who needs to add to it. Lets keep our kids happy and positive and free of any ideas of hurting themselves or their friends and family.
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9-13-2008 @ 2:30AM
Nick said...The fact that the child suceeded at suicide possibly means the parents or adults around him were not noticing his behavior, the real issue is that children do not make a distinction between make believe and reality, children need parents who are involved and can discuss it with them, the child will then understand. The problem is we now have adults who can't make the distinction between the two.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:20AM
ROZE said...Something else must of been going on for a child to do that besides a suicide bunny book.Look at alot of the old Disney movies.Poison apples, wicked stepmothers, Bambi's mom getting shot. Then we had the Saturday morning cartoons. And the books and stories that we read or were read to.Plus the heavy metal music that was blamed when there was a suicide. Let's get real about this. I really think there was more going on then meets the eye. I am sorry for the parents loss.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:23AM
Lawrence said...THE KID WAS TWELVE YEARS OLD NOT 5 PEOPLE IM SURE HE WASNT READIN BUNNY SUICIDES LOL WTF I WAS OUT PLAYIN POOL AND DRINKIN BEERS AT 12
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9-13-2008 @ 1:25AM
pigsaidoink said...ok,,what IDIOT gives a book,,ANY BOOK.
with out reading it to make sure it is appropriate for a youngster.
yeah, this is no book for kids,,,but I think those parents are not very good for children too.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:25AM
lin said...Check out the Book of Fred! A nice required reading on our list for 10th graders. I wouldnt even let my 15 yr old read the last 2 chapters. SICK! Nothing but filthy language and sex and the only comments I got was..well they PROBABLY see worse at home or on the tv, etc.etc.etc . No moral values .Yeah I'm sure the kid SNUCK the book in. who are u kidding.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:34AM
leathersarnett said...Hello! I as an adult read such cartoons and get the jest they are projecting. Adults can understand what these cartoons are meant to portray. Monitor what children are able to veiw on a daily basis, please!!! I feel this responsibility should be placed upon the parents of the children. It all reflects back to getting pregnant 101. PS it takes two! Oops, I forgot or a good scientist.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:40AM
stnsmok said...Parents are suppose to be smarter than the kids.
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9-18-2008 @ 3:14PM
Meghan said...Children do not have the mental capacity to tell the difference between dark humor and "truth". Books like this give them ideas that they are not mature enough to handle, tragedy is all too likely.
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11-12-2008 @ 10:57AM
Art said...Oh, please. A kid who wouldn't anyway have been considering suicide won't look at a cartoon and think, "Ah! That looks like something fun to do this afternoon!"
9-13-2008 @ 1:46AM
Lily Voila said...These sorts of books can be found in many stores. I've seen books like this in Urban Outfitters. They're meant more for an older crowd, late teens, early twenties, who find gross humor...humorous. It's not all that outrageous to me. A twelve year old would most likely go into a cool, hip clothing store, and they would find all sorts of weird thnigs, books and action figures that many older people would find to be terrible. But it's out there. It would only be a "bad" book if it were placed in the children's section of a book store.
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9-13-2008 @ 1:47AM
Jennifer said...http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/awardsscholarships/literaryawds/newberymedal/newberywinners/medalwinners.cfm
Current listing of all Newbery Award winning books to date. Enjoy!
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9-13-2008 @ 2:20AM
janet said...I am tired of reading all these comments about books not being suitable for kids. Yes it is for adults but thats where the parents have to come in and let their kids know about what life is about and that these are real situations others have to deal with and to let your kids know that if they feel those urges to want to kill themselves that you are there to help them get through this. Kids need to know about what life is about that way they can cope better instead of having everything they know about life sugar coated. If you want to complain maybe first you have to look at it in another point of view. This is why we have art. To express what the writer or painter is feeling to have an imagination. Without art, this world would be much more corrupted than what it already is. Instead of complaining about what's in your kids section at the library maybe you should look around and see that there are more harmful situations out there like child molestors who get out of jail and are living down your street and bullying that goes on in the schools. Situations your child will encounter more than reading a book. People should think about the safety of their children from actual harm especially from molestors since the kids do not have a say in this topic. Since congress feels that a molestor has more rights than the child or children they violated and took their innocence from that the death penalty is too harsh for them even though they know what they did to these children. This is something to complain about. Not about a book that is for entertainment purposes.
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9-13-2008 @ 2:10AM
justathought said...i dont care if its a book, a video, a picture or whatever, suicide is not something to take lightly. and to try to make a joke of it is sick. do i think a book can make you commit suicide? no, but if someone is suicidal,this would not be a book i would want them reading. i dont even think young children should be exposed to suicide. if this book is not directed at children, they should change the cover, it looks like a child drew it.
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11-12-2008 @ 10:53AM
Art said...Oh, whatever. Suicide jokes are hilarious! Honestly, anyone "pushed to suicide by a hand-drawn rabbit) was going to kill themselves anyway.
9-13-2008 @ 2:17AM
chihideki1 said...This is not a children's book! This is located in the adult humor sections of book stores. I know because I read them. The bookstore obviously made a mistake by putting it in the wrong section and are trying to cover it up by calling it a childrens book.
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9-13-2008 @ 2:41AM
Suzanne said...A lot of posters seem to think children are emotionally crippled and unsophisticated readers who prefer stories about fluffy bunnies, happy ponies, and rainbows. You think kids aren't dark? That they don't have gruesome, warped, and sometimes downright creepy senses of humor? Ever read Roald Dahl, one of childrens' most beloved storytellers for over 50 years? Mathilda downloads adoption papers from her local library so that she's able to ditch her crappy parents, Charlie watches with fascination as his selfish, spoiled compatriots meet grisly ends in Wonka's chocolate factory..... don't get me started on his revolting rhymes, which echo the original versions of fairy tales.
Parental responsibility seems to be a fleeting notion these days. I've been an insatiable bookworm since before I started first grade, when I decided if my older sister could read then I darn well could learn to read better. I devoured multiple books every week, but I don't think I read a book before I was 15 that my mother, father, or some adult family member hadn't read first. My parents paid attention and were ready to answer my questions. They encouraged me to read, but did not expect those books to raise me without their help. No matter how quickly your child reads, you should be able to read faster. If you can't, that's is your failing, not the fault of a publisher. As your child reads more, you learn to trust certain authors and the pull on you lessens. That said, my Mom bought me every Judy Blume book yet somehow knew to make me wait to read "Forever" and never did let me read "Wifey."
I know that seems like a lot of time to spend on your kids, but you can use the time you would otherwise spend blaming publishers and blowing hot air.
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9-13-2008 @ 2:52AM
dave said...Honestly people. I may only be 16, but even i feel parents are taking it to easy on their kids. I learned about death when i was three or so. Then after that i understood. If you introduce things that are natural and can't be stopped later and later in life its making kids worse off. Tell them about sex before puberty. Seriously. I had sex before i got the sex talk, before i completely understood a condom wasn't a sure thing. Tell your kids. Be an adult about it. Its worse if you don't. Personally i blame the parents for any bad thing that happened because of this book. thats just me.
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