Authors: James Bowen and Garry Jenkins Illustrated by: Gerald Kelley                          Publisher: Barron’s Educational Price: $16.99 US/$19.50 CAN

If you are a cat lover like myself, you may already know of the books A Street Cat Named Bob and sequel The World According To Bob.  Both are based on the real life stories of how a serendipitous encounter changed the lives of street musician James and a stray cat named Bob. The famous duos presence on the streets of London would be the basis for an amazing and inspiring tale.

Being a huge fan I jumped at the chance to review the newest addition, a prequel of sorts, called My Name is Bob which is geared for young children and is smartly told from the point of view of Bob the cat! The book introduces a whole new generation of readers to Bob and what his life was like before he met James. Bob is a house cat who is very much-loved and well cared for by his elderly owner, however a series of unfortunate events lead him to experience some unhappy times as a stray cat on the streets of London.

Readers journey with Bob as he encounters people, other cats and the perils of the big city before finally meeting James. Once they meet their lives are changed, a beautiful and life long friendship ensues and the rest is history.

My Name Is Bob makes a wonderful gift for any young child, it is fun to read, entertaining and well illustrated. It also includes some wonderful pictures of the real life Bob and James along with a synopsis of where the pair is at now. It is a story of hope and perseverance that will be sure to engage and inspire a young person.

I also appreciate that the story brings awareness to the plight of stray cats by highlighting real life challenges they face on the street, making it a positive tool for teaching kids about compassion towards animals.

My Name Is Bob is a great introduction to the world of Bob and James and it will make a purrfect stepping stone for reading the other books later on.

Bob and James

Release date is early May and can be purchased online from Barron’s Educational. It will also be available at most major and independent booksellers which include Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com in the US and retailers like Chapters Indigo, Amazon.ca, and Target here in Canada.

Did you know In real life James and Bob raise money for the Blue Cross animal charity in the UK giving back to the organization that helped them?

A copy of the book was supplied by the Publisher and the review was done for love not money 🐱