Gabba Gabba We Accept You

The Wondrous Tale of Joey Ramone

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Drag City (Chicago)

pub. 9.26.2025

51 pages

Ages 4 - 8

Author: Jay Ruttenberg

   Illustrator: Lucinda Schreiber

Character: Joey Ramone

Overview:

"Gabba Gabba We Accept You is a children's picture book that tells the story of how a kid who was bullied and felt like a misfit grew up to become a hero to so many as lead singer of The Ramones.

This story speaks to one of the greatest silent majorities in the world – all the kids who feel a little off. It contains an essential message that the world of punk rock has always meant to communicate. All of us, regardless of our diverse and non-exclusive design, have something that we are meant to have and share, in a place that we can call our own. As children, these things may appear to many of us as problems and shortcomings.

The challenging passages of life that brought Jeffrey Ross Hyman to the place where he became Joey Ramone provide a natural lesson to young folks navigating their way through the complexities of growing up."

Tantalizing taste:

"This was the splendor of Joey Ramone. He was always Jeffrey Hyman - awkward, tall, shy Jeffrey Hyman, who was born sick, who spent years being taunted by bullies, who so often felt out of place and uncomfortable. But Jeff never curved to the world.

Jeff curved the world to him."

And something more: An excerpt from the Kirkus review: "With eloquent wordplay, Ruttenberg gives readers an intimate sense of Joey Ramone’s life and times without ever tipping into fictionalized details or faux dialogue. Even the lack of backmatter (nary a timeline or bibliography in sight) cannot overshadow the frenzied fun on the page.

The bold colors and sheer delight of Schreiber’s art make Ramone an appealingly larger-than-life figure, each page vibrating with music and movement.

Above all, Ruttenberg underscores the inclusive nature of Ramone’s music; the titular lyrics (from the song “Pinhead”) serve as a rallying cry for outsiders everywhere. Space is left at the end for kids to write their own songs (librarians beware!)."