Getting Funny With ‘Pat the Bunny’

There are even sendups of the “Pat” books, such as “Pat the Beastie” with its green-furred monster and its own Paul and Judy, who look and act like members of the Addams family--as in: “Judy pulls Beastie’s fur. Will you pull Beastie’s fur?”

Clearly, these books are not written for Little Precious. And “Pat the Beastie” says as much. On the back flap is the warning: “Not suitable for children under 3--contains small parts.”

In fact, sendups such as “Pat the Beastie,” which sold a successful 75,002 copies last year, and “Pat the Stimpy,” an offshoot of Nickelodeon’s animated cult cartoon “Ren and Stimpy,” and “Pat the Yuppie” seem to be written for parents or, at least, much older kids. But it’s hard to believe that even a 3-year-old would want to “touch my hairball” or “lick the Gritty Kitty Litter” or “poke Beastie’s worm boogers.”

“I guess imitation is the greatest form of flattery,” Edith Kunhardt says.