The goal of the author is to help children to become better listeners.

Howard B. Wigglebottom is a young rabbit who is bullied at school and finally decides to tell his teacher.

Howard B. Wigglebottom learns a valuable lesson about anger and how to deal with it after being put in time-out during school for reacting negatively after not getting his way.

Howard B. Wigglebottom, a young rabbit who is only interested in his toys and what he is going to get for Christmas, begins to regret his behavior when he suddenly finds himself parted from his family, but a flock of helpful new friends teaches him the more lasting happiness that can come from giving and sharing.

"Joey didn't share and he felt there was something wrong with him"--Jacket flap. So Howard tried to help Joey. When Joey brought the chameleons to school, and they escaped, they were very hard to find. That gave Howard an idea about how Joey could fit in better.

Howard hires Ms. Owlee to help his friends learn manners ahead of the Pup Scouts' Good Manners competition.