IAmaBab y

Bob Shea
From the creator of the mega-popular Dinosaur vs. series
comes a hilariously deadpan look at new parenthood—
from a baby’s point of view.
With humor and sympathy, Bob Shea
I am not sleepy. looks at the chaos of life with a baby
I am not sleepy because I am a baby. as amiably narrated by the new arrival.
Mommy is sleepy. Repeating the mantra (and blithe
Mommy is sleepy because I am a baby.
explanation) “because I am a baby,” the
tiny narrator leads us through scenes of
exhaustion, grumpiness, squishy diapers,
spilled milk, cowering kittens, and
chubby overfed pups (oopsie!). Playing
against the simple, matter-of-fact text
are freewheeling illustrations of mess
and mayhem, in which the grown-ups’
exaggerated body language is sure to
send older children into fits of giggles.
With its endearing, unabashedly self-
pleased star, I Am a Baby will find a place
at showers, in nurseries, on parents’
shelves, and in the hands of appreciative
big siblings, as it celebrates the changes
a little one brings, at once challenging
I Am a Baby
On sale June 14, 2022 and full of love.
HC: 978-1-5362-1832-9
$17.99 ($23.99 CAN)
Ages 2–5 • 40 pages

Bob Shea is the author, illustrator, or author-illustrator of many well-loved

picture books and chapter books, including the Ballet Cat and Dinosaur vs. series as well as Unicorn
Thinks He’s Pretty Great; Unicorn Is Maybe Not So Great After All; Crash, Splash, or Moo!; and Who
Wet My Pants?, which was illustrated by Zacharia OHora. Bob Shea’s characters and animations have
appeared on Nick Jr., Playhouse Disney, and PBS KIDS. He lives in Connecticut.

Illustrations copyright © 2022 by Bob Shea

 A NOTE FROM Bob Shea
When my son was born, my wife and I swaddled him in
a blanket, put him in a car seat, and walked him the few
blocks to our apartment. No one at the hospital stopped
us. None of the doctors, nurses, or anyone in security
noticed that we were woefully unprepared and terrified.
Our son was OK. He seemed very comfortable with the
whole arrangement and really seemed to have a great
deal of confidence in us. He went about his day as usual, Photo by Colleen Shea
sleeping when he was tired, crying when he was hungry,
and soiling diapers at a pretty healthy pace. Our son,
Ryan, showed little concern for our incompetence. He
was laser-focused on being a baby, and it was up to us
to keep up.

I Am a Baby is a baby’s-eye view of the upside-down

world new parents are plunged into when they bring
home a little one. The chaos, exhaustion, frustration,
and endless laundry caused by this innocent-looking
person. Seriously, how much trouble can a baby be?
They’re so tiny and cute! Plus there are two of you
guys—can’t you gang up on him? Ahh, the wisdom
of a childless uncle.

Before you have a baby, you hear a lot of horror stories

from the trenches. Seasoned parents are more than
happy to show off their battle scars and share stories
of changing really messy diapers in the parking lot of a
remote public beach when they both thought the other
parent packed the wipes. Now that my son is a teenager,
I never frighten expectant parents with those stories. I
tell them the thing they will find out soon enough: that
they have no idea how much they are going to love this
little person. From the moment they appear in your life,
your heart walks around outside your body. Just ask the
weary parents in I Am a Baby.

Illustrations copyright © 2022 by Bob Shea