Berkeley toddler who inspired bestseller 'Go the F**k to Sleep' is now off to college

Vivien Mansbach attended Berkeley Rose Waldorf School, where friends knew they inspired Adam Mansbach’s popular picture book Go the F**k to Sleep. The parody picture book became a No. 1 New York Times bestseller for weary Gen X parents, with Samuel L. Jackson narrating the audiobook. When Vivien started high school at the Oakland School for the Arts, classmates did not know their father’s identity, leading to repeated questions about the last name and whether Adam wrote a book. Vivien was not embarrassed and found it cool to be the inspiration for multiple books in the series. Vivien recognized love beneath the profanity and jokes. With the release of Go the F**k to College, Vivien’s spotlight returns as they prepare to leave for Bard College.

"Once Vivien began high school at the Oakland School for the Arts, a charter school open to Berkeley residents, no one in their new crowd had any idea of who their father was. Before long, they were peppered with questions. What is your last name? Did your father write a book? When Vivien admitted that yes, they were a Mansbach and, yes, that Adam Mansbach is their father, The usual response was, Oh, my dad has that book in the living room.'"

"Were they embarrassed? No. In fact, Vivien thought it was kind of cool to be the inspiration for one of what was by that time three picture books their father had written. It's nice to recognize the sweet undertones of those books, even though they're full of profanity and jokes, Vivien said, of the popular series. I could always recognize the love coming through."

"With the publication of Adam's latest book, the fourth in the series, Go the F**k to College, the spotlight again shifts to Vivien, the eldest of Mansbach's three children, completing a circle that began with their arrival. Now 18 and a high school senior, they will be leaving for Bard College in Annandaleon-Hudson, New York, in a few months."

"Adam and Vivien Mansbach. Credit: Joanne Furio for Berkeleyside When Vivien Mansbach attended the Berkeley Rose Waldorf School, all their friends knew they were the child who inspired their father, Adam Mansbach, to write a popular children's book with the unforgettable title Go the F**k to Sleep. A parody of a picture book, its seemingly lighthearted verse contains a few well-placed F-bombs."

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