“Bunny,” by Mona Awad, is a dark comedy novel that dips into the literary fiction, horror and satire genres. Published in 2019, the book explores themes of battling personal identity, friendship, academic pressure and creativity. Readers follow the protagonist, Samantha Mackey, as she navigates an immersive writing program at the fictional Warren University in New England.
Insightful and snarky commentary from Samantha describes Warren University as a cliquey environment with wealthy attendees in the small town of Warren. Throughout the graduate program, Samantha has witnessed the inner circle of Warren University in full effect with one group at the forefront, the Bunnies.
The Bunnies follow along with Samatha in the same year of Warren’s writing program and include four extremely close-knit women with energetic personalities and unconventional approaches to their assignments. As Samantha becomes more involved with the Bunnies, the narrative turns darker as she struggles to maintain boundaries between reality and fantasy.
Awad keeps reader attention with eerie illustration of Warren and the people living there. Even though Samantha prefers isolation and time with her best friend Ava, she is inevitably drawn to the Bunnies. Awad’s dialogue and descriptions develop along with the story as the Bunnies’ conversations and personalities turn from kind and friendly to slightly creepy and strange.
Samantha’s initial attempt to separate from Warren until graduation is presented in her judgmental commentary of the school and its atmosphere. As the plot progresses, readers get visual descriptions of the extreme events occurring.
Throughout “Bunny,” Samantha describes those around her as if they are characters in a story of her own, as she prescribes ironic nicknames to each of the Bunnies: Cupcake, Duchess, Vignette and Creepy Doll. Awad constantly expresses Samantha’s view of this codependent friend group as irritating and overly excited to act and move together at one unit, but also her odd desire to learn more. This allows the readers to grow as Samantha does, turning each page to learn more about these girls.
Awad has received praise and criticism for her brilliant yet sometimes unsettling approach to fiction in her stories. Awad’s latest book released in 2023, “Rouge,” is a “horror-tinted, gothic fairy tale” that has received various reviews from fans, according to the novel’s page on Goodreads. Awad has also written short stories and articles. She formally debuted in 2016 with her novel “13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl.”
“Bunny” gives a unique and fascinating story with thought-provoking themes and psychological twists that are left to interpretation by readers. The book was named one of the best books of 2019 by Time, Vogue and the New York Public Library, and faces possibilities of a film adaptation, according to the author’s website.
