Momo celebrating time to read: Bob by Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead illustrated by Nicholas Gannon

Thursday, January 2, 2025

Bob by Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead illustrated by Nicholas Gannon

When she was just five years old, Livy visited and stayed with her Grandmother in a small town in Victoria, Australia about two hours drive from Melbourne. Livy's mum is from Australia but the family now live in Massachusetts. Livy is now ten and she and her mum have come back to show off the newest member of the family - baby Beth Ann. Strangely Livy has no memories from their previous visit but something niggles at the back of her mind. Then she discovers a surprise in her wardrobe - it is Bob!

But who is Bob? Where did he come from? Why has he been in this wardrobe for five years? How come he can talk? Why is he dressed up like a chicken? How does he know so much about Livvy? Why can't Livy remember her promise to Bob? And why does he love licorice so much?

All of these questions and deeper ones about the devasting drought that is causing great hardship in this country town form the basis of this totally engrossing story which is told by the two alternating voices of Livy and Bob. (Try to find Runt if you want to read another book about this impact of droughts here in Australia).

Inside the wardrobe Bob has some Lego to play with, comics to read, and a huge dictionary. Some of his favourite words are listed at the back of the book - brunch, eternity, library, solo and serendipity. His definitions are sure to make you smile.

I have resisted reading Bob for nearly six years! I read that it was set in Australia but knowing Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead live in America I feared it would be filled with Aussie cliches - think of Crocodile Dundee which is a movie that makes me cringe. This is absolutely not the case. Rebecca wrote her first part of the story on the plane home from Australia then she and Wendy Mass spent the next seven years creating their story.

The book is imaginative, intriguing and endearing. It is charming and funny in equal measure. It is sweet, in a myriad delightful ways. It truly touches at the same time as it entertains and surprises. It is a story that so beautifully captures aspects of both five and ten-year-old childhood that it chimes with much that is universal too. Magicfictionsincepotter

Mass and Stead’s brilliant collaboration has produced a beautiful tale of friendship, love, and the magic of childhood. Livy and Bob’s points of view alternate chapters, and each character’s personality is wonderfully realized with subtle nuances of emotion and humor. School Library Journal

Watch this video with Colby Sharp (6 minutes) where he shares his delight over reading this terrific book. Here are some teachers notes from the US Publisher Macmillan.

Anyway, I was TOTALLY TOTALLY wrong! Bob is a fabulous book with terrific illustrations and an imaginary friend who you definitely need to meet. Nicholas Gannon also illustrated The Doldrums.

Author blurb: It’s been five years since Livy and her family have visited Livy’s grandmother in Australia. Now that she’s back, Livy has the feeling she’s forgotten something really, really important about Gran’s house. It turns out she’s right. Bob, a short, greenish creature dressed in a chicken suit, didn’t forget Livy, or her promise. He’s been waiting five years for her to come back, hiding in a closet like she told him to. He can’t remember who—or what—he is, where he came from, or if he even has a family. But five years ago Livy promised she would help him find his way back home. Now it’s time to keep that promise. Clue by clue, Livy and Bob will unravel the mystery of where Bob comes from, and discover the kind of magic that lasts forever.

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