Bob Staake began work on Bluebird in 2002. Ten years later he felt he was ready to bring it to the world.

1: Walking Through The Park

The story was inspired by a Spring walk the author took through Central Park in 2002 and the many birds he encountered along the way. In particular, Staake noticed a cat bird that seemed to hop along the grass and fly along with him as he made his way through the park. The bird seemed as curious about Staake as the author was about the bird, and on the train back to Massachusetts Staake wondered if he could craft a story about a bird wordlessly interacting with a young child. In his Cape Cod studio, Staake began thinking about the book and created a cover concept sketch showing a solitary bird amidst a sparse, almost abstract, New York skyline. He called the story Bluebird.

Next