Bruce Springsteen to publish children's book

Following in the footsteps of musicians including Paul McCartney, Madonna and Dolly Parton, Bruce Springsteen has written a children’s book.

Titled Outlaw Pete, the book is based on Springsteen’s 2009 song of the same name, and was illustrated by Frank Caruso.

The publishers Simon & Schuster said that the book is “based on the celebrated song about a bank-robbing baby whose exploits become a meditation on sin, fate, and free will.”

Springsteen said: “Outlaw Pete is essentially the story of a man trying to outlive and outrun his sins.” The song, which appeared on the album Working on a Dream, was itself inspired by a children’s book, Brave Cowboy Bill, which Springsteen’s mother used to read to him as a child.

Caruso said: “When Bruce wrote ‘Outlaw Pete’ he didn’t just write a great song, he created a great character. The first time I heard the song this book played out in my head. Like Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Dorothy Gale and for me, even Popeye, Outlaw Pete cuts deep into the folklore of our country and weaves its way into the fabric of great American literary characters.”

The book will be published on 4 November.