Not-a-Box City
By Antoinette Portis
The Story
A determined bunny stacks cardboard boxes into an imaginary city, insisting on doing it solo — until building alone starts to feel like something's missing.
Why It's Special
For the kid who declares "I don't need help!" and then quietly wants some anyway, this one gets it completely.
- Big idea: Independence is great, but the best make-believe worlds are built with company.
- Vibes: Spare, playful, and quietly funny — big white space, big imagination.
Perfect For Kids Who
- love turning ordinary objects into whole worlds
- are working on asking for help instead of going it alone
- enjoy simple, funny dialogue between characters
- like to build forts, cities, or towers out of boxes
Ask Your Little Reader
- Story & problem-solving: Why do you think Bunny didn't want any help building the cardboard city?
- Feelings & empathy: How do you think Bunny felt building the city all alone?
- Real-life connection: Have you ever wanted to do something all by yourself? What happened?
- Imagination: If you had a stack of boxes, what would you build?
