Barnaby Unboxed! - Perfect Picture Book Buzz #PPBF and Giveaway

I loved the Fan Brothers' book The Barnabus Project! It was gorgeous, inventive, thought-provoking, and a wonderful adventure. It was a great day when I saw the cover reveal for their sequel.

I am so excited to be able to offer all of you a sneak peek at this stunning sequel and amazing picture book by the fabulously talented Fan Brothers! Building off the brief encounter with the "improved" perfect version of himself, which Barnabus saw as he and his fellow "mistakes" escape the Perfect Pets shop in The Barnabus Project, this spectacular book brings us back to the world of genetic pet modifications for an adventurous heart-warming look at perfection, pet ownership, consumerism, and friendship.

Book cover - a spotlight shines on a pink, mouse-elephant standing on a box.

Barnaby Unboxed!

Authors/Illustrators: The Fan Brothers

Publisher: Tundra Books (2024)

Ages: 5-9

Fiction

Themes:

Perfection, pet adoption, friendship, consumerism, family, and adventure.

Synopsis:

Follow perfect pet Barnaby on his perilous journey home through bustling streets, mysterious alleyways, and the untamed wilds of city parks in this gorgeously illustrated tale of friendship, unconditional love and belonging.

Meet Barnaby: he's half mouse and half elephant, with just a dash of flamingo . . . and fully trained!

When he's brought home to be pampered and cared for by his very own little girl, life is perfect . . . until a new, even more perfect pet comes on the scene. Suddenly Barnaby is no longer the most perfect pet around, and his little girl doesn't seem interested in him anymore. Feeling unappreciated, Barnaby runs away and finds himself swept up on a wild journey through the city and an emotional search for home in a tale of love found, lost and found again.

In a poignant follow-up to their award-winning, internationally bestselling picture book The Barnabus Project, The Fan Brothers and their brother Devin Fan have once again crafted a heartfelt and sweetly sensitive story full of adventure, friendship and family that will enchant readers of all ages.

Opening Lines:

Barnaby lived inside a box.

He was half mouse and half elephant,

with just a dash of flamingo.

He had lived in the box for as long as he could remember.

What I LOVED about this book:

First, I adored The Barnabus Project and was so excited that the Fan Brothers were going back to the "Perfect Pets Store" and their amazingly inventive and cool pet creations. As in their other books, The Fan Brothers' gorgeously stunning graphite and digitally colored illustrations are packed with imagination and whimsy.

Like Barnabus , this book also offers a fun book cover under the dust jacket. Where the first one had stunning genome and chemistry images, the sequel teases us with further pet creations - an elephant trunk snail, cactus buddies, and a lizard frog. Additionally. as with the first book, the end pages are full of fun file folders and hints of genome research for some more of these "perfect pets." I sure hope readers are lucky enough to get another book or so about these super sci-fi pets.

Book jacket, on the left, features a dancing Barnaby in a spotlight and a spotlight on Barnaby standing on a box. On the right, is the book cover filled with many imaginative and "perfect pets."

After reminding us of Barnaby, or introducing him to a new reader, the Fan Brothers revisit main street and some of the changes due to the "rather extraordinary events" ("spoiler" - the explosive escape of some spectacular 'failed' experiments) which occurred in the first book.

Internal spread - main street, in the process of repair, with the "Grand Reopening" sign on the Perfect Pets store, as the giant paper clip for "Wilke's Paperclips" is re-installed on the roof above.

Barnaby, a genetically engineered "half mouse and half elephant, with just a dash of flamingo" sits on a shelf with other boxed pets, above a "Last One!" sign. Which, given the little girl's exclamation, “Look! They have a Barnaby! Can we take him home? PLEASE?,” one might assume makes him rare and special. Although she waits to unbox him until she gets home, so the moment can be recorded (a possible commentary on the social media 'unboxing' phenomena?), whereupon she promptly declares "I love you, Barnaby."

Initially, everything seemed perfect. The girl and Barnaby enjoyed dressing up, doing magic tricks and chores, marveling at clouds, and reading books together. Barnaby was so happy he created a special move he only performed for the girl - "topsy-twirly." A fun little phrase to say which will have a very big role as a refrain. They both especially enjoyed watching Barnaby's adventures on 'his' TV show. (the answer to his special, sought after status). I really enjoyed how the Fan Brothers played with perspectives in a number of the illustrations, inviting the reader to share the girl's or Barnaby's point-of-view as an active participant.

Internal spread - the girl, her brother, and Barnaby watching a "Barnaby and Friends" TV show.

I also loved the tongue-in-cheek way the Fan Brothers play with Barnaby's 'stardom' in both the text and illustrations. One day the TV announces a "New Rainbow Barnaby" and suddenly the girl loses interest in her 'perfect' pet. As in reality, when the initial magic and joy of a pet dims, many a parent takes over the pet's care. In this case though, on a walk with the father, Barnaby decides to run away - "just long enough for people to miss him."

Internal spread - Barnaby running away from the dad, left holding an empty leash, down a rainy street, carying an umbrella and unknowingly being watched by a curious cat.

In addition to feeling this rainy, soggy day, we really get a great sense of Barnaby's size as he strolls past a single step and a discarded cup. As kids will likely be able to predict from this picture, sometimes plans don't go as expected. And Barnaby embarks on an eye-opening adventure. Where he discovers other "lost or forgotten pets," unexpected friends, and ultimately what really matters most to him. As Barnaby progresses through this months-long journey (which includes a wonderful Robinson Crusoe moment), observant kids will notice many "Lost Barnaby" signs and question the reliability of his worry that no one cares.

With an inventive, poignant ending this story explores pet responsibility and commitments that come when we offer them a furever home. But it also has underlying themes on commercialism, disposablity, and stardom (especially for kids). Wrapping up with a nearly identical penultimate page to the first book, Barnaby Unboxed! is a stunning, thought-provoking, and joyful science fiction adventure full of friendship and family that all ages will enjoy pouring over again and again.

Resources:

Endpaper - collage of file folders with images of "perfect pets" taped to the front and genetic information peeking out from underneath the folders.

look at the fun pets on the book cover and the files on the end pages. If you could create a new pet, what would you create? What would it look like and act like? What would you name it? Draw a picture of your pet or write a description like a report in one of the files.
how and when do you think the little girl rescued the other pets from the dumpster? What might the little girl have had to promise to get them to go home with her? What do you think she learned about adopting pets?

how often has something you really wanted been replaced with a "new, improved" version? What did you think about that? Was it really better? What did you do with the original?

🎈🎉 Barnaby Unboxed! Signed Copy Giveaway 🎉🎈

Awesome news! Eric, Terry, and Devin Fan are offering one lucky reader a signed copy of Barnaby Unboxed!.

- Simply comment below or on Monday's interview post (here) to be entered in the random drawing on September 6th.

- Be sure to say where (if) you shared the post (Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram), and I'll add additional entries for you.

- Sorry Canada and US residents only.

If you missed my interview with Devin, Eric, and Terry Fan on Monday, find it (here).

This post is part of a series by authors and KidLit bloggers called Perfect Picture Book Fridays. For more picture book suggestions and resources see Susanna Leonard Hill's Perfect Picture Books.