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Welcome To Bobville by Jonah Winter and Bob Staake Random House / Schwartz & Wade 2020 ISBN: 9780593122723 ISBN 10: 0593122720   Return To All Books     Behind The Pages With Bob: "I've always thought the name 'Bob' was kind of dopey and that the best thing you can say about it is that you can spell it the same way forward and backwards. When Random House called to say they wanted me to illustrate a book that had my name all over it they wern't kidding. Truth be told, 'Welcome To Bobville' was the singularly most challenging picture book I have ever created. From the beginning of the project I could immediately recognize a major problem -- the Bobs, and their world, would have to look dull, boring and absolutely tedious. These are not good atributes for the art in any picture book, so I had to walk a very thin tighrope to pull it all off. In the end I chose to depict the Bobs as sort of bumble bee-like and all appearing like clones. That said, I was proud to bring Jonah Winter's words to life with my pictures because the story is a clever parable for these Trumpian times. Will it become dated ten years into the future in 2030? Only time will tell." -- Bob Staake     Critics often compare my work to that of Dr. Seuss and while working on Bobville I couldn't help but recall both the plot and the repetitive art in one of my favorite Seuss books growing up, 'The Sneetches.' I was able to work in plenty of visual puns in the story. For example, there's a billboard advertising "Bob Cola - It's Always Flat!" and "Bob Fancy Ice Cream - Now in Vanilla and Vanilla!" The book that all the Bobs read is, of course, "The Holy Boble." This may be the only book in which I somehow got away with depicting a pair of conjoined twins. Summary: Here's a timely, hilarious picture book, with Seussian appeal! In Bobville, everyone is named, yup, Bob and everything is exactly the same­until one Bob decides he'd like to be a Bruce. Welcome to Bobville, home to people only named Bob! In Bobville, the Bobs eat the same food, wear the same clothes, watch the same movies, and have the same hobbies. They agree on everything­ ESPECIALLY that they don't like anyone who isn't named Bob. The Bobs go about their Bob ways, until one day, to the surprise of the entire city, one resident decides he wants to do things a little differently, and live as Bruce. In response, the Bobs build a wall to keep Bruce, and anyone else who dares to be different, out of the city. But Bruce doesn't mind­ it turns out the diverse world outside of Bobville is actually very beautiful. In this timely picture book, bestselling author Jonah Winter and acclaimed illustrator Bob Staake explore how exclusion and walls breed intolerance, and how being different and open-minded enriches our lives and the world. Booklist The circular black-and-white-striped residents in the village of Bobville, prisoners of conformity, all go by the name of Bob. Detailed drawings show that they eat the same food, have the same hobbies, think the same thoughts, and endorse the same music, movies, and books. Most of all "they did not like anyone not named Bob." But one day a bored Bob gels his hair, orders colorful clothes, and presents himself in a joyful vertical spread as a yellow-attired guy named "Bruce!" So the council decides to kick the Person Formerly Known as Bob out of town. They even build a wall to keep out anyone else who might be thinking like that. Meanwhile, Bruce goes out to discover a big exciting world and-you guessed it-lives happily ever after. Illustrator (Bob!) Staake accesses his own inner Bob to digitally produce the goofy cartoon drawings in pen, ink, and paint. While the Bobs remain uniformly boring in all their activities, the renegade Bruce joyfully explores a world of vibrant colors, faces, and personalities. It's a fun lesson with a not-sosubtle message that promotes pushing boundaries and embracing differences.   Kirkus Reviews In Bobville, everyone is named "Bob" (according to their nametags), and everyone looks exactly the same. Striped shirts stretch over rotund bodies, noses flop, and skin and clothes are drab in grayscale shades. Every Bob does the same thing as the next Bob-they eat the same food, think the same thoughts, indulge in the same hobby (playing accordion, of course), and dream the same dreams at night (watching paint dry). They have heard of suspicious others who are not named Bob but see those only on the news. One day, one intrepid Bob wakes up and decides instead to be called "Bruce." Bruce gets a new, very colorful wardrobe and steps outside. The town is appalled. They immediately ostracize the "Person Formerly Known as Bob," quickly building a wall to keep Bruce out forever (and any other errant "not-Bobs," too). Luckily, Bruce just might find a new, more accepting community, after all. Aptly named Staake fills the art with sly asides: a sign that states "Curb Your Bob," a supermarket shelf filled with Bob-related cereals, and a "Bobhound" bus, to name a few. Background colors in Bobville are muted to pastel shades; the other side of the wall is splashy, diverse, and bold.   Publishers Weekly The citizens of Bobville are the epitome of conformity: all named Bob, they also look and act the same. Staake (The Book of Gold), leaning into his stylized aesthetic, draws the Bobs as black-and-white figures with rotund, striped bodies; mostly bald pates; and bulbous noses. "Life could get a little dull," writes Winter (Mother Jones and Her Army of Mill Children), but the Bobs cherish their way of life-which also includes hating any outliers. When a renegade community member renames himself Bruce and starts wearing red striped pants and a variously patterned bright shirt, the reaction in Bobville is swift and draconian. "The Person Formerly Known as Bob" is banished, and the Bobs build a tall brick wall around the town "for keeping out other not-Bobs"; Bruce, looking not at all displeased, finds happiness in "the big, exciting world outside," which is populated by people (plus one robot, two Martians, and a unicorn) of every color, wardrobe, and lifestyle. The creators devote so many pages to the Bobville orthodoxy that Bruce's new life feels shortchanged, but the laudatory, relevant premise offers a clear way forward for non-Bobs everywhere.   Get Your Book Signed By Bob

Follow Bob: Welcome To Bobville Hardcover $38.00 USD Includes free shipping to continental U.S. ONLY. For international orders, please inquire.   Required: Please indicate in text field below to whom book should be signed - or simply state "sign only": To purchase an unsigned retail copy of this book at a lesser price, please click any of the BUY links to the left.