Winner of:
Mythopoeic Society Book Award
Golden Cowbell Book Award, Switzerland
Nominated for the:
New Jersey’s Garden State Teen Book Award
Maine Student Book Award
Nebraska Golden Sower
Maryland Black Eyed Susan
Michigan Great Lakes Great Books Award
Florida’s Sunshine State Young Readers Award
Kentucky Bluegrass Award
Rhode Island Children’s Book Award
Vermont’s Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award
Oklahoma’s Sequoyah Book Award
Great Texas Mosquito List Student Choice Award
The Cartwheel Book Awards
JOIN THE BOB BOOK CLUB!!
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.
Bookpage
“Writing superstars Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead have long excelled at crafting insightful, emotionally rich stories for young read- ers. Their first collaboration—Bob,a novel about (what else?) a most unusual friendship—is something wonderful indeed.
For the first time in five years, Livy is traveling from Massachusetts to Australia to visit her grand- mother. The last time she visited, she was only 5 years old, so there are certain details she doesn’t recall—like the small green creature living in the spare room’s closet. His name is Bob, and he’s been waiting very patiently for Livy’s return, spending his days building (and rebuilding) a Lego pirate ship and reading the dictionary. No one else can really see Bob (most people are convinced he’s a strange sort of chicken), and Livy’s memories of their prior time together are hazy at best, but new clues—and a new crisis—send the two friends in search of answers. Perhaps they saved one another once, and perhaps they can do so again.
Chapters alternate between Bob’s and Livy’s points of view, offering just the right blend of mystery and cozy magic in a rewarding story about how friendships—and people—evolve over time. Bob and Livy come to appreciate and love one another now while also feeling bittersweet about who they were then—and their fairy tale-like story proves that when friends get together, magical things can happen.”
The New York Times
“Pure enchantment”
The Wall Street Journal
“MAGICAL.”
San Francisco Book Review
“This is a welcome addition to the middle-grade canon and will likely become a classic. Bob deserves readership beyond middle grade.”
Publisher’s Weekly (*starred review*)
“Ten-year-old Livy, who lives in Massachusetts, hasn’t visited her Gran Nicholas’s house in Australia for five years. When she returns for a visit, Livy is struck by the feeling that something very important is waiting for her. Sure enough, a peek inside her closet reveals “a small zombie wearing a chicken suit,” perched atop a dictionary. “You’re back. Took you long enough,” the creature says to the girl. Once upon a time, it seems, five-year-old Livy discovered this strange being, who goes by the comically understated name of Bob, and the two formed a secret bond. Picking up where they left off, Livy keeps Bob hidden while they hunt for clues about what he is, where he came from, and how to get him home. Authors Mass (the Willow Falls series) and Stead (Goodbye Stranger) team up for this irresistible tale of magic, mystery, and friendship that poses timeless questions about identity and belonging. Ultimately, the answers Livy and Bob seek are waiting in the pages of a cherished book—a tribute to the power of storytelling, which draws readers into the imaginative investigation.”
“Five years ago, Livy left her friend Bob, who she describes as a zombielike creature, in the closet of her grandmother’s house in Australia without saying goodbye. Bob has loyally awaited Livy’s return, dressed in the chicken suit she made to disguise him, and hopeful about the promise she made to help him find his way home, wherever that may be. … A perfectly paced plot, supported by secondary characters to whom readers will relate and luminous artwork by Gannon, fill out a story that readers will eagerly embrace.”–
A Chicago Tribute Best Children’s Book of the Year
2018 Booklist Youth Editors’ Choice
New York City Public Library Notable 100 Best Books for Kids