Poppy has a problem. She’s been mistreated by others, so to prevent that from happening again, whenever anyone comes close, she “stomps her feet, rattles her quills and hisses loudly” to scare them away. This works…too well. One day a playful tiger cub wanders into Poppy’s life. Instead of giving him a chance, she does what she always does and scares him away. That’s when it happens: Poppy realizes that she is lonely for a friend and that she must change. Will she be able to find him again? And if so, will he give her another chance?

The Problem with Poppy is a book about a porcupine named Poppy who has been having a hard time making friends. When Rory, a tiger cub, meets Poppy’s way, he curiously wants to befriend Poppy, but Poppy, as usual, scares Rory and other animals away. Poppy was saddened by what happened and wanted to change this habit of hers. Determined to make friends, Poppy goes out of her way and does everything she can to make friends again. When Rory got in trouble, Poppy does everything she can to save her newfound friend. Did the friends survive the danger they encountered?