The Barnabus Project
As seen:
By Eric Fan, Terry Fan, and and, Devin Fan
avg rating
20 reviews
In a world built for Perfect Pets, Barnabus is a Failed Project, half mouse, half elephant, kept out of sight until his dreams of freedom lead him and his misfit friends on a perilous adventure. A stunning picture book from international bestsellers The Fan Brothers, joined by their brother Devin Fan.
Deep underground beneath Perfect Pets, where children can buy genetically engineered ""perfect"" creatures, there is a secret lab. Barnabus and his friends live in this lab, but none of them are perfect. They are all Failed Projects. Barnabus has never been outside his tiny bell jar, yet he dreams of one day seeing the world above ground that his pal Pip the cockroach has told him about: a world with green hills and trees, and buildings that reach all the way to the sky, lit with their own stars. But Barnabus may have to reach the outside world sooner than he thought, because the Green Rubber Suits are about to recycle all Failed Projects . . . and Barnabus doesn’t want to be made into a fluffier pet with bigger eyes. He just wants to be himself. So he decides it’s time for he and the others to escape. With his little trunk and a lot of cooperation and courage, Barnabus sets out to find freedom – and a place where he and his friends can finally be accepted for who they are. This suspenseful, poignant and magical story about following your dreams and finding where you truly belong will draw readers into a surreal, lushly detailed world in which perfection really means being true to yourself and your friends.‘A stately, cathartic morality tale about freeing oneself from the tyranny of wanting to be perfect.’ —The Financial Times
‘ingeniously imaginative’ — School Library Journal
‘A heartfelt, timely allegory celebrating diversity, bravery, and solidarity.’— Kirkus
Reviews
A wonderful book to introduce children to the idea of belonging and friendship.
Everyone is not perfect, but this the perfect book for people of all kind.
Very nice and exciting
Love it. fun book
I like that barnabus is very cute and kind
Great book and beautiful illustrations
Barnabus was my favourite character, he was the failed project and found out there were others like him. He used his trunk to free him and others. They managed to escape!
I enjoyed the story and would recommend.
A sweet picture book which could be linked to evolution and how differences should be accepted not rejected.
I really enjoyed reading this book, and yes, it was fiction, and I would definitely recommend this to somebody else.
The artwork in the book is gorgeous, so involved and inticing. But the story is quite dark, aimed at 5-9 year olds is pretty dark. I read the book out loud to my husband, 17yr old and 14yr old, and to be honest everyone agreed the story is dark! It borders on an abusive situation, the characters are kept out of sight, they are being told you are not perfect enough so you have to be kept away from others, scary people in suits that hide their faces. The characters have to escape the situation by breaking free, and running away and end up living in a park, as homeless people.
I don't know how this can be a good story for young children!
I thought this book was very good and inspiring, to help others and not leave them behind.
I liked Barnabus the best.
I would recommend this book.
This is a fiction book and Barnabus is my favourite character, but they were all very cute. I liked it when they all managed to break free.
I like this book because it shows even if you are not perfect, you are still perfect no matter what.
I liked all of the different monsters better than the upstairs pet shop ones.
The green men were a bit scary
I really enjoy the Barnabus project as I think Barnabus is cute, brave and kind to his friends.
It was exciting
A beautifully illustrated book which delivers a powerful message about being yourself.
Wow! What a story to remind children that we are all wonderful, no matter what our differences are. It teaches acceptance and personal rights through the most adorable animals! An amazing tale with the most beautiful pictures. Suitable for all primary age children.
I like this book as it was a book we also read at school. It's a lovely relaxing book to read.
Shared this text with the school community during lockdown as part of a virtual book group. The story brought home the importance of resilience, grit and determination in realising your own worth and value. Individual pupil responses were beautiful the story of Barnabus and his friends resonated deeply with them.
