Bob, NOT Bob! by Liz Garton Scanlon & Audrey Vernick illustrated by Matthew Cordell

image source: Amazon.com

By Mary K.

Bob, Not Bob! by Liz Garton Scanlon & Audrey Vernick illustrated by Matthew Cordell (2017)

The cover and title page instruct those reading this sweet, silly tale out loud to read it “as though you have the worst cold ever” and therein lies the joke. When Louie catches a cold, all he really wants is his Mom. But how to you let Mom know you need her when your nose is all stuffed up and saying her name sounds like “Bob?” Oh, and it just so happens their pet dog’s name is...you guessed it! Bob. Through several days of illness Louie gets more and more frustrated as he calls for him mom and instead of the snuggle he wants his dog comes running. This leaves everyone confused until, finally, his Mom just decides to lay down with Louie (and Bob). There are a few smaller vignettes in the illustrations that may make the book a bit more difficult to share with large groups, but smaller storytime crowds, especially older preschoolers and young elementary school students who’ve experienced feeling just like Louie, will enjoy this relatable tale. While the reader will really need to ham it up and make the effort to sound stuffy, the payoff in laughter and engaged listeners will be well worth it.

Themes/topics: family, illness, mothers, dogs, pets

Sample text from two spreads:

"The next day, Little Louie was even sicker. His lips chapped and his eyes gunked. As for his nose, you can’t even imagine. So he just lay there getting hot and sweaty, which sounded like “Hotten Smetty.” “Who’s Hotten Smetty?” asked his sister. “No. Not SMETTY, SMEDDY! And HODD!” Tessa didn’t know who Smeddy was. Hodd either.

Mom would understand. “BOB!” called Little Louie. His dog, Bob, came running. And slobbering. “NO! BOB! NOT BOB!” Tessa looked at him like he was cuckoo. So did Bob"