An unexpected addition to Fforde's oeuvre - with more than pointed nods toward current social issues [the fear and hatred attendant with physical differences and the difficulties in surmounting the hierarchies established therefrom]. Really poignant, thought-provoking, and, as always with Fforde, clever and kooky.

It starts off slow and kind of dense, but once the action begins, it's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. It reads as a true epic, one that makes you feel the world really has been reshaped as you read it. Would recommend.

Fforde is a master as blending genres and pushing the reader to redefine narrative possibilities with his latest science fiction/political allegory. The Constant Rabbit is a satire worthy of Jonathan Swift's praise. The writing is clever and thought provoking which one would expect nothing less of Fforde.

If you’ve read a Jasper Fforde book, you know it’s going to be a bit quirky. This time it involves rabbits and a hefty dose of relevance to current world events. Given the state of things at the moment, I’m not sure how I feel about the analogies here. It’s well written and engaging, but I wasn’t sure how I felt about it by the end.

https://newbooksnetwork.com/jasper-fforde-the-constant-rabbit-viking-2020

In Jasper Fforde’s The Constant Rabbit (Viking, 2020), residents of the United Kingdom live among human-sized anthropomorphized rabbits.

The rabbits make fine citizens—more than fine, in fact. They in live harmony with the environment (embracing sustainable practices like veganism, for instance). They have a strong sense of social responsibility. They’re also smart: The average rabbit IQ is about 20 percent higher than the average human IQ. Yet despite their upstanding qualities, the haters keep hating.

Fforde is an accomplished satirist and uses humor to spotlight some of our ugliest impulses, including racism and xenophobia. In The Constant Rabbit, a populist party known as TwoLegsGood has parlayed leporiphobia (fear of rabbits) into a successful political movement. In control of the government, TwoLegsGood is planning to segregate the nation’s more than 1 million rabbits in a “MegaWarren” where they will be under round-the-clock surveillance and their freedoms curtailed.

TwoLegsGood’s treatment of rabbit has echoes of all caste-based and hate-filled societies, from Jim Crow to apartheid to the Nazis. “When it comes to the sort of demonizing of the minority other, there's just so much to draw on. You don't need to go to any specific place in the world or a specific time. You can just pick and choose from here, there and everywhere,” Fforde says. “The rabbits are being got rid of because they're not human. But, of course, one of the first things that any discriminatory group will do against another group of humans will be to dehumanize them, to make them non-human. And this is often done through language. We had a politician recently in the in the U.K. who started referring to immigrants a plague.”

The novel’s first-person human protagonist, Peter Knox, denies having animus toward rabbits—in fact, he finds himself falling in love with one—and yet he’s forced to come to terms with the fact that he, too, has played a significant role in their oppression. “I think the book is hoping to say to people, ‘Look, you cannot look at the hate groups and say “These people are the hate groups. I'm nothing like them.” In fact, perhaps what you should be thinking is “Maybe I am complicit, and in what ways could I possibly be so?” ’

The Constant Rabbit is an original and witty take on a very sober subject. Taking place in an alternate universe in which rabbits (and a few other animals) became anamorphically altered suddenly in the 1960s, Rabbit tells of the struggles of rabbits to fit in to society. Decades later people, and rabbits, are still divided about each other. Hate and violence aren't common, but occur.

Peter works for Rabbit Compliance. He is a highly specialized and secret asset. He can differentiate rabbits in ways most humans cannot. Rabbit Spotting is a highly sought after skill. But Peter is conflicted. He has no issues with rabbits rights. He is friendly to them. Too friendly. And he must hide it.

The Constant Rabbit tackles the racism and xenophobia that has always been present but became more militant in the 1906s with the civil rights movement. Groups and factions on all sides have learned to live together in a tenuous peace that seems to be getting more and more fragile as extremism takes hold worldwide. The Constant Rabbit, while seemingly whimsical at times, takes on these issues unflinchingly. At times it was bogged down with history, details, and footnotes. I started skimming some of those.

Jasper Fforde books are never a disappointment. Thanks to him, his publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC. See this and more of my reviews on my blog at: https://readeotw.wordpress.com

This is a departure from Mr. Fforde's other series, and he tackles anthropomorphic rabbits with his usual aplomb, snarky humor, and interesting plot twists and turns. Fans of dystopian / humorous fiction will enjoy.

Jasper Fforde is back!

Since the Thursday Next series (which was brilliant), Fforde has mostly been a no-go for me. Too much absurdism, not enough plot. But the Constant Rabbit is a return to top form for Fforde, whose humor and creativity shine in this unique, delightful story.

I was a bit skeptical upon hearing this was about the systemic oppression of anthropomorphized rabbits. It felt far too absurdist to work, and too buffoonish in its humor and satirical approach. Surprisingly though, it works exceptionally well for the point Fforde is trying to make, never gets obnoxious, and provides loads of material for the type of clever, wink-nudge humor that so endeared me to the author back when I first read Thursday Next.

This can be read as a thinly-veiled sociopolitical satire of the world today, honing in on issues of racism, immigration, and othering. The point Fforde is trying to make isn’t hard to suss out. But if you’ve had enough politics for the moment or you just prefer to keep your fiction and your nonfiction topics separated, it’s not difficult to step away from the real world comparisons and simply enjoy the book for its own sake.

The Constant Rabbit is funny, poignant, and surprisingly sweet. The ending wasn’t the one I wanted, but I think it was the one the book needed. In all, a dynamic, exceptional effort by Fforde.

This book tells a ridiculous story about racism, but turns that story on its head by making rabbits the hated and feared minority. Like all of Fforde's book there are many silly moments(don't take that as a criticism). The courtroom scene alone makes the book well worth reading and is a telling indictment against underestimating those we don't respect. Great book.

The premise for this novel sounded very original and engaging, but I found the novel itself unsatisfying because of the stereotypical depictions along gender lines.

Fforde is the best. I've loved his work since the early Tuesday Next days and it has been a joy to see him slowly get back into the groove of writing for grownups after several years in the YA / writers block trenches. This book is leaps and bounds above EARLY RISER, which felt a bit slapdash to me; this book is also more furious and, I guess, fast. It reads like a bullet, screaming internally while keeping it reserved on the outside -- very British, I suppose. I don't think this'll be the one he's remembered for, but I appreciate that it exists and damned if I didn't mind him preaching to the choir a little. Sometimes, you need that, these days.

Jasper Fforde has crafted a fascinating world. During a Spontaneous Anthropomorphizing Event 18 rabbits and several other animals became antropomorphized. Over time, humanity has struggled with the idea of other life that is on the same level as them, and what has resulted is a (rather on the nose) environment filled with racist and xenophobic viewpoints. The book looks at generational divide and conspiracy. It is shockingly relevant.

This book is very enjoyable. If you someone who is concerned about being outnumbered in your own country, you will probably not enjoy it.

I was not sure if I was going to like this or not but wanted to give it a chance because it is a book that have rabbits that get a virus that turn them into the size of humans. Weird, right? Well give this a chance because it is relevant to what is happening in the current political climate. I dare say this is an updated, more modern version of the beloved classic, Watership Down. Highly recommended and a re-read for sure.

Thanks to Netgalley, Jasper Fforde and Penguin Group Viking for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 9/29/20

Fforde is back, doing what he does best, social commentary delivered in a sharp, on the nose way. After “The Event” rabbits and a few other species are “humanized” but society is not ready to accept them. They are fighting for rights, equal pay, who they want to be within a relationship. Basically, it #rabbitlivesmatter and it’s so good.

I loved the intro to this book. It starts off with a trip to the library. Except the library’s only open for 6 minutes and there’s a Sole Librarian. It’s very funny and lets you know what to expect from the author, Jasper Fforde. Mostly what you can expect is the unexpected and rather absurd treated in a matter of fact manner.
Speaking of absurd, in this book human-sized and intelligent rabbits are a thing. (Think Bugs Bunny style). There’s no explanation for this, other than ‘it happened.’
But don’t let that throw you off.
Fforde is an excellent writer and this story is entertaining. It also does a great job of pointing out some of humanity’s absurd behavior.
I highly recommend this story. It is the perfect mix of funny, insightful, touching, and satire.

Really enjoyed this book. At first the use of intelligent human sized rabbits was hard to take, but the strength of the characters made it engaging. Constant RBbit also had one of the all time great endings.

I love a clever satire. In "The Constant Rabbit," Jasper Fforde sets up a parallel history in which rabbits and some other animals (but not all) became anthropomorphized in 1965. This historical shocker is called the Spontaneous Anthropomorphic Event. The action is set in the present, 55 years later.

Peter Knox of Much Hemlock, Hereford, works for a government agency in the UK, the Rabbit Compliance Taskforce (RabCoT). RabCoT is in charge of keeping the alien Rabbit population under control and making sure the Rabbits comply with the law. The UKARP, or United Kingdom Anti-Rabbit Party, has taken control of the government and, under the leadership of Prime Minister Nigel Smethwick, is taking a harsh line in favor of "hominid superiority." Of the slightly fewer than a million anthropomorphic rabbits in the UK, about 100,000 are free. The rest are kept in colonies.

Along with the many other legal restrictions on Rabbits (a maximum wage included), the hominid supremacists want them all colonized, in a MegaWarren in Wales. I'm guessing that the title of the book is a play on "The Constant Gardener" due to the MegaWarren and many other conspiracies in Smethwick's totalitarian government.

Peter Knox is ostensibly an accountant, but is actually a Spotter due to his ability to tell rabbits apart. Knox doesn't like to think about what the RabCoT authorities do with the information he provides. 30 years ago at university, Knox knew a rabbit named Connie with whom he was close, but not as close as perhaps he and Connie wanted to be. Peter is also a "speed library volunteer" during Buchblitz (the six minutes every other week when the public library is permitted to be open). When Connie arrives requesting a banned book, "Planet of the Lagomorphs," she and Knox renew their acquaintance. He then finds out she is married and moving in next door. His neighbors the Mallets, who are descended from a magistrate who burned witches, are not going to take kindly to "vermin" in the neighborhood.

The villain of the novel is an anthropomorphized bloodthirsty fox in charge of RabCot, who reads "Fox and Friends." His name is Ffoxe. He kills rabbits. He is orange. He quotes Latin. Therefore, he is a parody of not one, but two world leaders. There are extreme political factions on both the right and left, 2LegsGood, on the right, are violent hominid supremacists. On the left, it is common at the RabSAg, or Rabbit Support Agency, to chop off one's thumbs in solidarity with the Rabbits.

The Rabbits are peaceful, vegetarians of course, and want to be left alone. Most Rabbits follow the Rabbit Way under the spiritual leadership of the Venerable Bunty. The Rabbits worship a goddess called Lago the Grand Matriarch. Due to their obvious advantages (population being an obvious one) and because they are simply different, their very existence is a political issue. Rabbits like Connie are not going to meekly go to the MegaWarren without a fight. "The Constant Rabbit" is a fun parody about racial discrimination and full of chuckles, if you're on Fforde's side. I can't imagine that Boris Johnson and Donald Trump devotees who are anti-immigration and opposed to Black Lives Matter will find the novel as funny as I did. Because I'm American and an Anglophile, I got nearly all of the jokes.

I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley and was encouraged to submit an honest review.

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC copy of this book available to me.

Wow. This book as so very dark, and uncomfortable, and outrageously funny and amazing. This book describes a world where, 50-some years earlier, a population of rabbits in the UK had somehow been anthropomorphised, raised in size and intelligence to human levels. It follows how a portion of the UK population targets these peaceful creatures and makes them out to be the reason for any and all bad things that are occurring. (Not too dissimilar to how the Nazis the Jews and other populations.) However, the author tosses in enough humor in his descriptions to make it well worth reading all of the uncomfortable parts.

Jasper Fforde has created a darkly funny satire of modern politics in The Constant Rabbit; set in an England where 1.5 million human-sized, talking rabbits are being oppressed by the government, and forced into warrens (essentially reservations).

Fforde's bitingly incisive takedown of fascism and right-wing attitudes toward immigration is irresistible, if a bit dense. (There are a LOT of footnotes, which kept showing up in weird spots in my digital ARC, instead of at the bottom of the page, so things got a little convoluted at points, but hopefully the final book will not have such issues.)

No one can compare to Jasper Fforde! I love his wonderfully satiric take on the world and how he incorporates that take into the stories he creates. I am such a huge fan of his work and The Constant Rabbit is no exception. He creates such richly detailed alternate universes that always suck me and won't let me go. His characters are diverse and have a depth that you don't see in many writers. He is one of my absolute all-time favorites!