"I'm Not Bobby" By: Jules Feiffer

Rating: 2/5
Grade Level: 1st Grade and above
Illustrations By: Jules Feiffer

The book "I'm Not Bobby" is about a little boy who refuses to answer to his parents when they call his name. He mentally transforms himself into anything but himself so that he technically doesn't have to listen to his parents since he is "not Bobby". Bobby runs away and only returns home from "Mars" when he is hungry and even then he returns as a lion with Bobby's face so that they don't know he is a lion and then if his parents refuse to feed him dinner or let him watch TV he will eat them. I did not like the message that was portrayed to the readers; I think this book is suggesting that it is acceptable to disobey your parents in addition to other members of your family since Bobby continues to run even after his Mom, Dad, Uncle Bill, Cousin Frank, and Aunt Sally can't catch him. Bobby imagines that Mars will have every channel of TV that he could ever hope for, and only decides that home is acceptable when he becomes hungry. I think this book devalues family appreciation. I also think it is disrespectful when Bobby states that he will only return not as himself but as a lion; this suggests that he will only return if he does not have to listen to his parents since he is "not Bobby". He also states that he will only return if they will allow him to watch TV as much as he wants or else he will eat them. In this instance he is putting TV before his family and that he would rather not live as their son than be disciplined. If I did use this book in my classroom it would only to inspire imagination and the different ways that one can perceive themselves.