Man on the Moon (Bartram, Simon Series) by Simon Bartram

by Simon Bartram

Bob has a very important job on the Moon. But who’s that in the background making faces at him? Kids will laugh along at this strikingly illustrated tongue-in-cheek tale.6:00 a.m. Wake up. Have two eggs for a.m. Arrive at launchpad. Change into special man-on-the-moon a.m. Blast a.m. Arrive on a.m. Start work.This is how Bob, the Man on the Moon, begins his day. It’s Bob’s job to entertain the tourists (handstands and high moon jumps are a hit), conduct Moon seminars (how long does it take to walk around the Moon on stilts?), sell souvenirs (pens, postcards - the usual), and keep the Moon clean and neat. Some people say that aliens are the ones who leave all the trash, but Bob tells them aliens don’t exist, and he would know . . . wouldn’t he?

Genres: Picture Books, Space, Childrens, Fiction, Aliens, Adventure, Science Fiction

Paperback

First published July 22, 2002

Reviews

[Eve · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. As the title suggests, it is about a day in the life of Bob, a man who lives on Earth but works on the Moon. The illustrations are interesting and there are lots of things that could be discussed with the children. In particular, aliens are hidden in every picture but the story says Bob knows “there’s no such thing as aliens.” I think children would find this amusing and would enjoy looking for the aliens in each picture.

This would be great to read to a KS1 or early KS2 class. As it is a "day in the life", it could be read during the children’s study of time. At each point that time is mentioned in the story, the teacher could pause and the children could hold up their cardboard clocks to display the correct time. Alternatively, the children could use this as an example to write descriptively about what they do on a school day – what they have for breakfast, how they get to school, and any particular adventures they have. In addition, it could be used for a lesson on imaginative writing, for example; by using the book to introduce ideas of work and career, and then asking the children to discuss and write about what they want to be when they grow up.

[Nickie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this story - year one lived it too! The timings leant themselves so well to a weeks worth of telling the time lessons for cross curricular link which fed into their final story sequel of alien on Venus it similar or space Suzy in Saturn! Other literacy lessons included activity be the story out, writing a postcard home from the moon, describing bob, story mapping, designing own alien or space person and finally writing a sequel using time connectives.

[Rosie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book tells the story of a man (Bob) who works on the Moon, his daily commute to work is in a rocket ship. When on the Moon Bob tidies, entertains, gives tours and educates. It is repeated throughout the story and Bob believes that there are no aliens on the Moon, however aliens can be spotted on almost every page!

I think young children would enjoy this as they are able to see something which the character does not. This could lead to debates around the subject of aliens and looking at images of the Moon. There are however many potential misconceptions surrounding the Moon and space which would need to be addressed (such as it taking 15 minutes to get to the Moon and that the Moon has gravity similar to Earths - as things are on the surface and not floating away).

[Ruby Khan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A funny book for children to hear read aloud, or for them to read for pleasure. I would not necessarily use it for teaching purposes but I am sure that children would find the concept of aliens engaging, and enjoy the narrative.

[Sophie Brand · Rating 5 out of 5]

genuinely the best book ever

[Katharina Hartwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter likes it especially when the aliens sneak into the rocket. This is a very good book that shows us that even though we think aliens are not real, they are in fact real and living amongst us.

[Ben Hagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great space book looking at, as the title suggests, a day in the life of Bob. I really enjoyed the style of this book as it was told in 3rd person, present tense. It gives a different perspective and you feel as if you are a fly-on-the-wall in Bob's day.
This is a great book to use if you were focussing on using present tense as it shows it perfectly. It would also help if you were looking at writing diaries or this story could be imitated and innovated and the chn could write about a day in the life of someone they know, a made-up character or themselves.

[Chris Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Man on the Moon takes a look at a day in the life of Bob. Bob doesn't have the average day job, but still has to wake up early to go to work…on the Moon! Bob’s hectic day consists of cleaning and tidying the moon, welcoming visitors, performing tricks for tourists and much more. Bob knows almost everything there is to know about the moon – but there’s something going on behind his back that he hasn't spotted. Are there really aliens on the moon? Bob doesn't think so.

The Blue Peter book of the year 2004 is well written and illustrated by Simon Bartram. Bold and colourful pictures in the story add well to the simple yet humorous tale that Bob journeys on day by day.

This picture book is probably best suited to key stage one, although it can be used with versatility throughout the years. For instance, I read the book to a group of Year twos for a literacy club writing task recently and it was also used as the basis of the literacy planning for a year four topic on the solar system. It was also used as the fundamental idea for a school assembly performed by a year four class. Bob it seems is therefore very popular throughout the age ranges and is a favourite amongst the children.

[Grace Abwooli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story takes the reader through a day in the life of Bob. Bob’s day starts on earth, his home. Every day, Bob travels in his spaceship to complete his many duties at work on the moon. Some of which involve cleaning and entertaining tourists. As the story progresses, we find that Bob is totally unaware of the fact that there are a few aliens lurking around on the moon. These aliens can be seen upon the moons craters on each page of the book. These aliens sneakily find their way onto Bob’s spaceship and accompany him on his journey home.

‘Bob, man on the moon’ is a great read for foundation stage children. The book is a great way to teach children about the moon and space. ‘Bob, man on the moon’ has been used as a core-reading book in some primary schools. Children are also able to read and comprehend the book independently, whilst having fun spotting the aliens. The book has fantastic eye catching illustrations, which aid in understanding the story. I like the simplicity of the story line and would recommend the book to all key stage 1 teachers.

[Kyran Delaney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man on the Moon by Simon Bartram is a straightforward story of a man's day at work, on the moon, with an underlying humour. We read the book as a class activity (Year 1) and the children had to do a review of the book afterwards which they loved. You don't mind having to read it over and over again and it was a good excuse as we had to do so anyway. There are fantastic pictures throughout, a kind of bold exaggerated lifelike style (except that the book is full of aliens). The children thought it was hilarious that Bob is the Moon expert and knows for sure there are no aliens, and yet if they look carefully the reader can spot them here, there and everywhere, stealing his cake at his picnic, on the bus in the earth rush hours, even in his bath. It's an enjoyable read for ages 5 - 7 and I highly recommend it.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was used extensively for Literacy with a Year 2 class. The children wrote descriptions of the aliens on the moon; they wrote a job advert for Bob's job, and then applied for the job, explaining how they were suitable candidates; finally, they prepared a brochure for visitors to the moon. They enjoyed reading the book together and produced very interesting and imaginative work. It's a good story and can be easily expanded to different levels. Bob is an 'ordinary' man, whose job is working on the moon, where he cleans and sweeps, provides entertainments for tourists, sells souvenirs and turns on the moon's nightlight. He is completely oblivious to the aliens who are on the moon, which amused the chldren. Many of the children were interested to learn more facts about the moon, planets and stars following on from this story. Recommended for KS1.

[Mehzabein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story follows a young man named Bob on his adventurous day at work on the moon. His day begins early with many exciting things to do to keep him occupied like welcoming tourists, cleaning and performing tricks but there is something that Bob hasn't spotted in his long day at work. I read this story repeatedly over a week to children I was teaching and they thought it was a fantastic, hilarious story. They formed a fond liking for Mr Bob and loved to point out all the weird, wonderful aliens in the bright illustrations. Children even created a role play of this story and performed it in assembly. The book is very versatile and different literacy activities can be planned such as comparing illustrations and describing the aliens. A definite must have in the classroom.

[Jason Bootle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love it when the illustrations have lots of hidden elements to it. This is one such book.

[Lizzy Preece · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man on the moon (a day in the life of Bob) follows the life of Bob for the day as he goes about his day as an astronaut. It is set between earth and space and shows Bob’s transition between the two and has elements of real life in the sense of his morning and evening routine and some elements of fantasy such as tourist tours to the moon. Bob is known as the Man on the Moon and is the main character in this story, insight is given into the tasks he does on a daily basis such as “changing into his special man on the moon suit” and entertaining tourist spaceships. The book also briefly introduces two characters who are Bob’s friends; Billy the man on Mars and Sam the man on Saturn.

The story starts by introducing Bob in his home and explaining his morning routine and his journey to work. Following on from this it also shows the process of Bob getting ready for work at the launch pad, specifically the time he has to arrive, be ready and leave by, which is a recurring theme throughout the book. The book then goes into detail of what Bob does at work on the moon such as keeping it clean and tidy, and giving guided tours. Another recurring theme within the book is the phrase “there’s no such thing as aliens” which may encourage speculation among the children reading and provoke discussion. The story then explains the process of the end of Bob’s day and his journey home. The story finishes with Bob’s evening routine and a question about whether aliens really do exist.

The story is told in third person which allows the reader to feel that they are following Bob closely, allowing them to warm to the character, making him likeable. The story is set in the style of “a day in the life” and uses time to show this. This technique makes it easy for children to follow as it allows them to relate it to their day to day life, such as getting up and having breakfast and having a bath before going to bed.

The words and pictures work together well as the text is clear and key words and phrases are put in bold. This allows children to focus on reading the text as well as paying attention to the illustrations. In this story the illustrations are the main focus of the book as most are spread across a double page. The images are very clear and are able to really support the story and the process of following it. The reader will be able to apply their current knowledge of a working day and what they have witnessed in their day to day like such as watching their parents go to work and knowing what they do. In addition to this, children can also apply their knowledge of space and the solar system, if this is an interest or something previously learned about in school.

In the majority of the pictures and illustrations, aliens can be seen in the background hiding or the main focus of the image. This adds an element of suspense for young children as they may be waiting for bob to spot them. When reading this book with children prior to coming to university, this has always been an element of the story that sparks discussion but also excites the children as they feel they know something that the main character of the story does not.

The story includes several different patterns. The mentioning of time is frequently used as a constant throughout the story and gives context to whatever Bob is doing in that moment. The theme of “there is no such thing as aliens” is also key as it builds on that speculation and reiterates to the reader that they may know something extra that is not being noticed by the characters. There are multiple books by Simon Bartram that use the character of Bob in the story such as Bob’s Best – Ever Friend and Bob and the moon tree mystery. Also, a lot of his books follow a similar diary entry style of writing which is different and engaging for the reader, but also offers a sense of familiarity.

This would be a good book to use for shared reading as the vocabulary is pretty clear and the book is easy to follow. By working in a smaller group, it will also allow for more questioning and discussion among the children and they can discuss certain things such as if they believe that aliens are real and encouraging them to debate and discuss their ideas about which elements of the book they believe would happen. It would also. Be a good text to use if beginning topics such as space in science lessons, or diary entries in literacy sessions as it gives a basic and straightforward introduction of the concepts. The text provides a good model for writing as it can start to introduce the idea of “a day in the life” this will help children discover or reinforce a new and different writing style that may feel familiar to their day to day lives.

[Adam Arzberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Children love clueless Bob and the aliens who ‘aren’t really there’. Bob is as silly as he looks and it is fun to play with the idea of a grown up with such an important job (keeping the moon clean and tidy and performing for space tourists) can be so oblivious to what we can see (as the adult, it’s fun to pretend you can’t see them too). This worked really well as a class text with year 1 children, lots of opportunities to explore inference and dramatic irony and both the story and the beautiful oil painting illustrations capture their imagination enough to provide a term’s worth of activities alongside topic exploration:

• Choosing adjectives and nouns from word bank cards, they design their own aliens, writing out the sentences next to their pictures as they go. We turned this into a classroom display but it wouldn’t be a stretch to turn it into a deck of top trumps cards for use in independent learning or wet play too.
• Creating a timeline of Bob’s day looking at sequencers, first, then, next... Children then create their own timelines of their ideal day on the moon.
• Class trip to The Moon (school hall with the curtains closed, cut out aliens from the book hiding in corners and hoop craters, benches laid out in rows for the seats on the rocket, loud speakers playing rocket launch from YouTube). We used this as Drama to help them picture what their day on the moon might look like and PE (jumping in and out of craters etc.).
• The term topic was ‘Neil Armstrong and The Moon Landings’ so this book was referred back to frequently.

Outside of teaching and learning, this is just a really fun book with lots of opportunities for silliness.

[Hannah Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary and narrative structure

This picture book follows Bob, a human who works on the moon- and is sure that aliens do not exist! The story is told in the style of a day in Bob’s life, as the sub-title suggests. The reader follows Bob from the moment he wakes up on earth and follows him at his job on the moon, where he must clean and entertain tourists, back to his home again in the evenings. The running narrative tells the reader that Bob does not believe in aliens, and surely, he would know if they existed- whilst the images in the book show that aliens are ever present throughout Bob’s day.

This is a fun and engaging picture book that I believe would be attractive to students in KS1, and even early years, due to the appealing art style and the subject matter of space and aliens! I think this would work well as a real aloud to the whole class to inspire their imaginations, and also inspire work throughout the curriculum- which I have detailed below.
The story belongs to the sci-fi/ fantasy genre but has some ‘everyday’ features that students would be able to recognise and relate to. For example, Bob’s normal 9-5 schedule of work, eating lunch with his friends and the element of the Moon being a tourist attractive, the students may be able to relate this to an experience they have had at, for example, a museum. The sci-fi elements are overwhelming though, the fact Bob flies in his rocket to the moon in his spacesuit and we see the aliens everywhere adds excitement and curiosity to the story.


The fact that the story is ‘a day in the life’ style means it is written in the 3rd person, I think this really adds to the narrative as the reader is able to notice things that Bob does not- such as the aliens.

Likes and dislikes
I think the most likable thing, for me, about this book is definitely the illustrations, they are bright and exciting to look at; especially the aliens as there appear to be lots of different kinds that are different colours, shapes and sizes. The fact that Bob does not believe in aliens, but they are ever present in the illustrations really creates an exciting opportunity for the reader to spot all the aliens that Bob seems to be oblivious to. Especially in scenes such as the rush hour, where aliens can be seen walking through the streets, on public transport and in local homes. This could be an interesting talking point with students, why do we think Bob does not think aliens are real? Why do we think he does not notice the aliens? This is the big puzzle of the book.
As mentioned, this book gives me almost unlimited ideas of ways it could be used with a KS1 class across the curriculum, not just an English, so I think it could be a really affective text with the right class.
Bartram has a whole series of books about Bob and space, so there gives easy opportunity to explore the world more if students are interested in doing so independently. The book itself does remind me of another picture book I have read, ‘Aliens Love Underpants’ by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort, which I have read before with a pre-school group. There is the obvious link between aliens being a key feature, but the thing that really made me relate the two books is the art and colours used to illustrate the aliens. In Freedman’s book aliens exist peacefully on Earth, much like in Bartram’s book, and not a scary invader of the planet as aliens are often perceived in society.
My only reservations about using this text would be that although I would consider this to be a sci-fi book, there are elements of fantasy and some of these could easily lead to misconceptions with younger children. For example, how long it takes to travel between Earth and the Moon, the Moon having gravity like Earth. However, these could easily be overcome by researching more about space- perhaps in a science lesson. Lastly, I could understand if some found the book to be slightly dull as there is no exciting moment or event, as it really is just a day in the life. However, any book could be picked apart in this way and, overall, I think this element adds to the picture book rather than limiting its use/ enjoyment.

Cross-curricular ideas
English
SPaG- there is some interesting vocabulary used in this book that might possibly be new to pupils in KS1, such as somersaults, souvenir, stilts, craters, astronauts. It also acts as a good lead on to talking about the difference between writing about yourself and writing from a different perspective. Pupils could write their own day in the life, either of themselves, or maybe someone else like is done in the book.
Creative writing- there are so many opportunities for creative writing tasks as a direct result of looking at this book. For example, writing postcards as if they were visiting the moon, writing tourist leaflets all about the moon (perhaps in collaboration with science lessons), writing Bob’s job description and then applying for that job etc.
Non-fiction links- could be good for talking about the difference between fiction and non-fiction- although this is about space, how do we know it is not based on facts?
Science
Good resource for the study of space- starting talk about the different planets, the fact that in space there is not gravity, the distance between Earth and the moon, among other planets.
Maths
Using the idea of the gift shop on the moon, as is shown, to help with addition and subtraction, use of money etc.
Also, can use the ‘day in the life’ style of the book to talk about telling the time- the book does refer to the time, such as Bob having lunch at twelve-thirty.
Art
Creating your own alien, what colour, how many arms, legs and eyes, are they wearing clothes, what do those look like- are they human clothes or something different?
Create a space scene using black paper and chalk- planets, stars, rockets etc.
Drama
Role play the gift shop as mentioned in the Maths ideas, or just role play a scene from the book, perhaps when Bob is giving an informational talk about the moon to visitors and they are asking questions.
PSHE

How to be a responsible and respectful citizen- everyday Bob must clean up after the aliens because they leave their rubbish everywhere- talk about whether we think the aliens should be doing this. Is this what a good citizen does?

[Yusra Ahmed]

Simon Bartram's Man on the Moon (A
Day in the Life of Bob) is a vibrant and witty picturebook that follows Bob, a want to be astronaut with a oblivious attitude toward the aliens hiding in plain sight. the book is Packed with humor, great illustrations, and a predictable storyline, this book is a favourite with the children in the classroom. It's also a great resource for supporting phonological awareness in reception and year 1, offering opportunities to explore rhyme through its language, emphasising on alliteration with phrases like
"Bob bounces back," and encourage expressive sounds with onomatopoeia like "whoosh" or "beep."
Teachers can extend the story's space theme with environmental and instrumental sounds or use body percussion to act out Bob's routine, connecting to movement.
Additionally, it supports oral blending and segmenting with thematic cvc words like “moon” or “rock” “nuts” “big”.

[Holly Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Bob, who has a very special job of looking after the moon. He knows almost everything about it, but there is one thing that he is blissfully unaware of... aliens!

This is a fun and creative book which the children loved and really got stuck into. We linked it to an English unit where the children were working on characterisation and setting description, hopefully to eventually write their own adventure stories, and it gave them lots of ideas and inspiration. The illustrations and vivid and and sparked lots of discussion. We've read it loads of time and they never get tired of it!

[Helena's Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not like this book at first sight - I found the drawings off-putting and the story nothing special. My toddler daughter kept asking me to read it (she's a big fan and is intrigued by astronauts and stuff purely because of this book) and eventually I came around as well - the whole aliens running joke is good fun and the story quite charming in a quirky way. Still not sold on the drawing style though!

[Mrs. Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why do I like this book? I have no idea! It's quirky, and out there - do you know what I mean? Oh, but the art - it's so bold and bright with neat lines and details that can transport a reader. Plus, who wouldn't want Bob's job? He works...on...the...MOON! This one is just plain fun - no morals, no lessons, just a path to the place where children (and the opposite of children) go to learn to love reading.

[Bernardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Las ilustraciones lo son todo. Fue por lo que lo compré y lo repasaré como referencia a mis propios dibujos cada que pueda, no conocía a este ilustrador y su estilo de colores cálidos y acabados que rondan el «Uncany valley». El arte tiene una hechizante construcción y colorimetría. Me hace pensar en los personajes plásticos, oníricos de las historias de Philip K Dick, sería un tremendo jonrón que Simon Bartram ilustrara al menos un cuento del viejo Felipillo.

[Indy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting future-oriented story for children, when space traveling is possible and affordable to every one. And hence, new kinds of jobs are created. For instance, Bob works on the Moon, and this story revolves around a day in Bob's life, when and how he gets to work, what he gets to do on the moon. Very creative, and definitely fascinating for kids who love space.

[Becky Sparkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used this book during a series of literacy lessons with a year 1/2 class. The class all wrote letters to bob asking him what it is like to be on the moon bob then replied sending the children the book to read and lots of their questions were answered. We also did some drama where the children had to imagine they were walking on the moon and think what they would hear and how it would feel.

[Emma Kearney · Rating 5 out of 5]

SBC summer text.
This cheeky little story is fabulous for KS1 children. It provides a familiar feel for children as Bob does love to go home and drink a nice cuppa after a long at work (on the moon). This book brings the extraordinary into perspective and creates a world of magic and functionality at the same time. There are lovely links to art, PSHE and science here.

[Dorthe Svendsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

En bok som sjuler mye i sine bilder, som kan brukes til muntlig og skriftlig undring. Skal dere ha om verdensrommet, så kan dette være en kjempegøy intro eller outro. Historien i seg selv er også enkel og drømmende, og kan motivere til egen drømming om ett fremtidig yrke eller reise, det kan jo brukes på de litt endre.

[Zoe Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Used this as my yr 1 literary book, so many great teachable lessons can come from this story. Kids loved it, especially when we acted out how it would feel like to walk on the moon, then send a postcard describing it!

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is all about a mans daily routines and his travels to the moon. It allows the children to think about the times of the days and routines that they may follow in their day.
It is comedic and allows for the children to get involved and consider what they might do in the same situations.

[Helly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful illustrations. Charming day in the life story of Bob. A fun opportunity to find the aliens on every page. My one year old routinely picks it up off the shelf and hands it to us so we can read it to him every morning.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is extraordinarily silly, in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. I think the humor went right over the heads of the little ones, but I found the dry humor most pleasing. Sci-fi for the little ones?

[Jenna Mills · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was just too 'out there' for my liking! What was with all the aliens everywhere?!!!