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Aaron
Bobby is a patient in the psychiatric hospital who befriends Craig. He is recovering from drug addiction and has struggled with mental health since he was 15, including previous stays in psychiatric hospitals. Craig helps Bobby find something to wear for an interview at an adult home, and this teaches Craig about his value to other people. Ultimately, Bobby is one of the few patients who doesn’t want to exchange phone numbers with Craig, believing it’s best for Craig if he just holds on to Bobby as a memory so that he can focus on his own recovery.
Bobby Quotes in It’s Kind of a Funny Story
The It’s Kind of a Funny Story quotes below are all either spoken by Bobby or refer to Bobby. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 29 Quotes
“I have shirts. I’ll lend you a shirt.”
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Chapter 42 Quotes
“So now,” I continue, “instead of a quarter-life crisis they’ve got a fifth-life crisis—that’s when you’re eighteen—and a sixth-life crisis—that’s when you’re fourteen. I think that’s what a lot of people have.”
“What you have.”
“Not just me. It’s the . . . um . . . should I keep going?”
“Yes,” Noelle says.
“Well, there are lot of people who make a lot of money off the fifth- and sixth-life crises. All of a sudden they have a ton of consumers scared out of their minds and willing to buy facial cream, designer jeans, SAT test prep courses, condoms, cars, scooters, self-help books, watches, wallets, stocks, whatever … all the crap that the twenty-somethings used to buy, they now have the ten-somethings buying. They doubled their market!”
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Chapter 46 Quotes
“Yeah, well, all the worse, then, when you try to call me or Johnny up and find out that we’ve OD’ed, or been shot, or come back here even worse, or just disappeared.”
“That’s a pretty negative view.”
“I’ve seen it before. You just remember us, okay? We meet in the outside world, it just ruins it. You’ll be embarrassed of me and I . . .” He smiles. “… I might be embarrassed of me, too. And I might be embarrassed of you, if you don’t keep your stuff together.”
“Thanks. You sure no numbers?”
Bobby shakes my hand. “If we need to, we’ll meet.”
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Bobby Character Timeline in It’s Kind of a Funny Story
The timeline below shows where the character Bobby appears in It’s Kind of a Funny Story. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 19
...hands over his keys—he isn’t allowed to have any sharp objects. A gray-haired man named Bobby who’s wearing a Marvin the Martian sweatshirt comes over and says it’s time to give...
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Chapter 20
Bobby leads Craig to the dining room, where the other patients are much older than him....
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Chapter 21
...named Armelio starts shouting for everyone to come to lunch and introduces himself to Craig. Bobby explains that Armelio, a patient, is like the president of the floor.
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Chapter 25
Craig is afraid to make phone calls at the ward because Bobby and his friend Johnny use it a lot. Finally, he gets a chance on the...
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Chapter 29
...form, and he finds the form surprisingly easy to complete. When Craig’s at breakfast with Bobby and Johnny, Bobby is nervous because he has an interview at an adult home coming...
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Chapter 30
...he’s done with Aaron and Nia too. Monica says she’s seen Craig with Humble and Bobby and warns him not to get too close, because his first priority should be to...
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Chapter 35
That evening while Craig is in the activity lounge with the others, Bobby comes in and says he passed his interview. Bobby’s success makes Craig more hopeful about...
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Chapter 36
The next day, Humble is away. Bobby suggests that staff probably took him to a different wing to put him on heavier...
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Chapter 37
...playing “I Shot The Sheriff.” Then they play some songs by the Beatles. Becca and Bobby start to dance, while Johnny refuses. Craig is nervous about having to dance when it’s...
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Chapter 44
...Minerva asks Craig more about his Anchors, and Craig goes down the hall to grab Bobby. He then shows her his art, and Dr. Minerva is impressed. She asks Craig why...
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Chapter 46
Next, Craig draws brain maps for Bobby and Johnny. Johnny wonders whether they’re supposed to rip it in half to each have...
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Chapter 48
That night, Dad comes back to watch Blade II with him, Humble, Bobby, Johnny, the Professor, Ebony, Becca, and a new guy who goes by Human Being. When...
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Chapter 50
The next morning, Mom and Dad arrive at 7:45 a.m. to take Craig home. Armelio, Bobby, the Professor, Smitty, and Ebony all say goodbye. Noelle asks for him to call her...
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