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The "Better Call Saul" star is the author of "Zilot & And Other Important Rhymes", a book of poems he wrote with his two children when they were younger. His daughter, Erin Odenkirk, a graduate of Pratt Institute, did the illustrations for the book.
The Odenkirks will be appearing at Books and Greetings in Northvale on Saturday, Dec. 21 at 10 a.m. The Odenkirks previously held a book signing at the same venue last year.
While the family was home together during the pandemic, Bob revisited the Olde Time Poetry Book and realized he had something there.
"I said to Erin, 'You do the drawings, I'll rewrite the poems,' " Bob told Daily Voice last year. "Some of them are good."
Zilot is an original word that Bob's son, Nathan, came up with.
"He came home once and said let's build a zilot," Erin remembers.
A zilot is an indoor fort made up of couch pillows meant to evoke a secret tent room. The Odenkirks used to go in there with a special light and read books and write poems. Bob said he would often read four to five books a night to his kids and said he always made it a priority to read to his children.
"Kids can learn an awful lot from books," Bob said. "It helps you think about your feelings and allows you to feel a connection to other people, their fear and uncertainty. I wanted my kids to feel comfortable with language."
Erin said she was excited and honored that her dad selected her to do the illustrations for the book, though it was not without its complications.
"It became quickly obvious that he's someone I respect, but he's also my dad, who had a high possibility to annoy me and bother me," Erin said. "But ultimately it went great. It brought back lots of memories, and provided me with loads of laughs and joy."
Bob said he is "bursting his buttons with pride" at how good Erin's illustrations are.
"I'm insanely proud of her wonderful work in bringing 'Zilot' to life," Bob said. "The visuals are all Erin Odenkirk. She achieved her sense of style. She just did a beautiful job."
Most importantly, the kids who have seen the book seem to be enjoying it. The Odenkirks were sent a video of their friends' 2-year-old flipping through the book and loving it. Erin said the positive reviews from kids are the best part of writing the book.
"I believe them more than any adults," Erin said. "The most rewarding thing for me would be to find this book in someone's house with the jacket cover off. That shows it was a well loved book that they often reached for."
The Odenkirks are excited to meet their fans. Bob said he looks forward to having kids read the poems aloud and also wants to see kids create their own poems, with Erin doing illustrations on demand. That's okay with Erin, as long as Bob holds up his end of the bargain.
"I will make him write poems on demand," Erin said.
"We want to share the good vibes," Bob said. "We can't wait to see you."
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