Bobby the Brave (Sometimes)

Starred review from August 15, 2010
Fourth grader Bobby Ellis Chen is back and just as insecure as ever (Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), 2009). He is sure he is a disappointment to his father, a former pro-football star turned stay-at-home dad.  Bobby can barely throw a football farther than a few inches, and he's even less likely to catch one. He selects the role of the dog in his class's version of Annie so he won't have to remember lines and embarrass himself in front of an audience. There's also a scary, 27-toed neighborhood cat, a pair of dancing goldfish and a furry costume that leads to disaster. Yee's understanding of nine-year-olds as they carom from highs to lows without any idea of how they got there makes the situations and characters completely believable. Santat's black-and-white sketches add a lighthearted touch. Bobby is a charmer who will win readers' hearts as they recognize that he is a good friend, a loving big brother and a talented skateboarder—and that his father is, indeed, very proud of him. (Fiction. 7-10)

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

August 1, 2010

Gr 3-5-Bobby Ellis-Chan is back in another charming story about an average fourth-grade boy from an unconventional family. His new gym teacher thinks he's super-athletic like his dad, a former star linebacker (he's not); his class is putting on a play (uh-oh); and he hears his father telling his quarterback sister, "He's not like me." Good thing he has close friends (except for awful Jillian Zarr) and gets his first choice for his role in Annie, Sandy. Bobby's classmates, friends, and family ring true; Yee has created believable and endearing characters. There's an excellent chapter in which the class discusses Bobby's asthma. Illustrations are included throughout the book. Readers will devour the fast-paced writing, spot-on dialogue, and heartfelt lessons embedded in the text and empathize with the sometimes-brave Bobby, his worries about his place in his family and at school, and his struggles and successes.-Nicole Waskie, Chenango Forks Elementary, Binghamton, NY

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2010
Grades 2-4 Bobby Ellis-Chans relationship with his dad is at the heart of this sequel to Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) (2009). Dad was a football star before he retired, and Bobby, who doesnt play the game well, worries that Dad thinks hes a loser. But then Bobbys stay-at-home dad struggles, too, when he tries to cook and insists on sewing Bobbys costume for the fourth-grade show. As Dad attempts to help and fails, Bobby must decide whether to confront his father or console him. True to a kids viewpoint, the fast, wry narrative and familiar scenarios will grab readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)

September 1, 2010
In Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) (rev. 9/09), fourth-grader Bobby Ellis-Chan learned he could remain friends with longtime pal Holly and (mostly) ignore other kids' opinions about boy-girl friendships. In this sequel, Bobby discovers more about people's expectations, both real and imagined. PE teacher Mr. Rainerhaus expects great things of the son of ex-football star The Freezer, but it's skateboarding that Bobby excels at, not football. Overhearing his dad say, "He's not like me," Bobby assumes he has also let down his dad with his nonexistent football skills. And Bobby has his own unrealistic expectations: he wants his new fish to be just like his old fish, the talented Rover. When Bobby works up the courage to confront his dad, he learns that Mr. Ellis-Chan's "not like me" comment referred to Bobby's skateboarding ability, something his big, clumsy dad envies. And Mr. Ellis-Chan confesses he feels like a disappointment -- a stay-at-home dad who can't cook or even sew a decent school-play costume. Everything works out: free from football guilt, Bobby discovers his new fish have their own special talent (they do synchronized swimming!), and his dad realizes he doesn't have to be a superdad (i.e., plain pancakes would actually be preferable to inedible apple banana crunch pancakes). Though not quite as laugh-out-loud funny as the first, this sequel will please Bobby's fans and win over new ones. jennifer m. brabander

(Copyright 2010 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2011
In this follow-up to Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), Bobby Ellis-Chan's PE teacher expects great things of him. Overhearing his ex-football star dad say, "He's not like me," Bobby assumes he's let Dad down with his nonexistent football skills. Everything works out for both father and son in this sequel that will please Bobby's fans and win over new ones.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from August 15, 2010
Fourth grader Bobby Ellis Chen is back and just as insecure as ever (Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), 2009). He is sure he is a disappointment to his father, a former pro-football star turned stay-at-home dad. Bobby can barely throw a football farther than a few inches, and he's even less likely to catch one. He selects the role of the dog in his class's version of Annie so he won't have to remember lines and embarrass himself in front of an audience. There's also a scary, 27-toed neighborhood cat, a pair of dancing goldfish and a furry costume that leads to disaster. Yee's understanding of nine-year-olds as they carom from highs to lows without any idea of how they got there makes the situations and characters completely believable. Santat's black-and-white sketches add a lighthearted touch. Bobby is a charmer who will win readers' hearts as they recognize that he is a good friend, a loving big brother and a talented skateboarder--and that his father is, indeed, very proud of him. (Fiction. 7-10)

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)