Spongebob SquarePants, that loveable, pineapple-dwelling sea sponge is most famous for his on-screen antics, but did you know he also stars in numerous children’s books?
He and the rest of his pals down in Bikini Bottom have been immortalized in literature for decades now, in popular titles such as GoodNight Lagoon, SpongeBob and the Princess, The Amazing SpongeBobini, and The Case of the Missing Krabby Patty, just to name a few.
Ten major characters take center stage in the Spongebob franchise, and each one has its own unique, detailed backstory and individual personality that helps to make these stories so popular.
Their creator is Stephen Hillenburg; a marine biology teacher turned artist who used his passion for aquatic life and his natural creative flair to bring these characters to life.
And even today, more than twenty years after SpongeBob’s debut, this motley crue of hilarious underwater creatures are still loved by millions around the globe.
SpongeBob Books Six Most Fascinating Characters
All the characters that appear in the books also appear in the TV show and the movies, so even if you’ve never read any SpongeBob SquarePants books before, you’re probably already familiar with some of this diverse cast.
But how much do we really know about these entertaining ocean-dwelling animals?
In this post, I’ve selected six of the main cast and taken a deep dive into their backstory to find out more about who they are and where they came from. So, even if you’re already a SpongeBob aficionado, you might learn something new about one of your favorite characters.
1. SpongeBob SquarePants
The star of the show is SpongeBob SquarePants, an energetic and enthusiastic sea sponge who lives in a pineapple with his pet snail, Gary, at 124 Conch Street, Bikini Bottom.
His next-door neighbor is the cantankerous Squidward Tentacles, who is constantly irritated by SpongeBob’s antics. But the loveable SpongeBob suffers from a lack of self-awareness, and he firmly believes that he and Squidward are great pals, despite Squidwards obvious disdain for him.
But SpongeBob has many true, loyal friends, and his best friend of all is a starfish named Patrick Star. Patrick lives under a rock next to Squidward’s home, and he looks up to SpongeBob like an older brother.
The pair, who have known each other since early childhood, are the sole members of the exclusive “Best Friends Forever Club.” They’re constantly getting into mischief together and coming up with hair-brained schemes that land them in all kinds of sticky situations.
- A Glittering Culinary Career
But when he’s not causing mayhem with Patrick, SpongeBob holds down a full-time job at Bikini Bottom’s finest restaurant, the Krusty Krab.
Ever since he was young, SpongeBob dreamed of becoming part of the Krusty Crew, and finally, after years of waiting, his opportunity arrived.
He’s been the restaurant’s master fry cook ever since, churning out those famous Krabby Patties to hungry locals and proving his impressive cooking skills that even Squidward can’t deny.
And he’s not just an excellent Krabby Patty chef; he’s a speedy one too, whipping up hundreds, if not thousands of the things in the space of just a minute.
Because of this, SpongeBob is the most integral member of the Krusty Crew and has 374 Employee of the Month awards to prove it. He’s super passionate about his job, and his favorite place to be is at work, making his signature dish, which he firmly believes is the ‘the best food in the world.’
- Boating Failures
When SpongeBob isn’t working or making mischief with Patrick, he attends boating classes led by Mrs.Puff. But while he studies hard and does well in his theory exams, his fear of being behind the wheel makes him freeze up, and no matter how hard he tries, he still hasn’t managed to pass.
- An Ageless Sponge
SpongeBob’s youthful spirit means that sometimes, he’s mistaken for a child, but his official driver’s license, which we see in the TV episode “Sleepy Time,” shows his date of birth is July 14, 1986.
But despite the fact that he’s technically well into his thirties, SpongeBob is exuberant, silly, joyful, and childish in equal measure, and we wouldn’t have him any other way.
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2. Patrick Star
Patrick Star is a naïve, frumpy, loveable starfish, who lives a modest life in his home under a rock at 120 Conch Street, next door to Squidward and two doors down from SpongeBob.
Patrick is SpongeBob’s best friend in the world, and just like SpongeBob, he annoys his neighbor Squidward to no end without ever realizing it.
- The Slowest Starfish
But while SpongeBob often displays surprising academic ability and determination, Patrick is dim-witted, slow, sluggish, and lazy, and his extreme naivety frequently gets him into trouble.
Still, despite his cognitive challenges, he’s an all-around nice guy with the best of intentions at heart. That being said, he can throw a doozy of a temper tantrum from time to time.
- When Patrick Sees Red
We first see one of Patrick’s outbursts in the TV episode “Valentines Day,” where he flies into a toddler-like rage when he doesn’t receive a gift from SpongeBob.
He’s also sensitive about his weight, so much so that when SpongeBob lightheartedly refers to him as ‘tubby ‘in the episode “No Weenies Allowed,” he sees red and throws a punch at his friend.
- Self Esteem Issues
But deep down, Patrick’s anger is rooted in insecurity. He often feels inferior to his smarter, thinner, and more successful friends. Sometimes, the only way he can express his self-esteem is through an emotional meltdown.
Thankfully, his friends love him dearly, and he’s quickly forgiven for his discrepancies. They know that the real Patrick is a gentle, good-natured soul who just happened to be at the back of the line when God was giving out the brains.
3. Squidward J.Q. Tentacles
Despite his name, Squidward is actually an octopus, not a squid, and he’s quick to correct anyone who suggests otherwise.
He’s bad-tempered, arrogant, and rude, with little to no interest in helping others. Instead, he much prefers spending time alone in his Easter Island head-shaped house, playing the clarinet, and painting his own self-portrait.
Squidward is one of the most well-educated and intelligent residents of Bikini Bottom, and he certainly knows it. He’s constantly chasing fame and recognition, and he sees himself as a misunderstood genius. In his view, the world is simply too dumb to recognize his brilliance.
- Bad Neighbors
Squidward is by far the most cantankerous individual in Bikini Bottom, and he has an extremely low tolerance for silliness, or frivolity.
As a result, he finds living next door to SpongeBob and Patrick almost unbearable. So much so that he attempted to move house to get away from them, but circumstances drew him back to his home at 122 Conch Street, and his cycle of torment began again.
- Cashiering at the Krusty Krab
If living next door to SpongeBob wasn’t bad enough, Squidward also works with him at the Krusty Krab, where he mans the cash desk. He hates his job with a passion, and most of the time, he wishes he were somewhere else.
His cynical, selfish, and short-tempered nature leaves him with little patience for his colleague SpongeBob’s exuberant, over-the-top enthusiasm for work. Yet all the while, SpongeBob remains largely oblivious to Squidward’s disdain for him, and he sees him as a good friend.
- The Softer Side of Squidward
Despite his frosty and ill-mannered exterior, on occasion, we see Squidward’s icy heart thaw just a little.
He’s been known to stick up for SpongeBob in the times he’s needed it the most, and it’s safe to say that if his neighbor ever moved away, deep down, Squidward would be more than a little heartbroken.
4. Eugene Harold Krabs
Better known as Mr. Krabs, this short, red, stocky crab is the money-grabbing owner of the Krusty Krab restaurant. He’s also a proud Navy veteran who lives in a hollow anchor at 3541 Anchor Way, Bikini Bottom, alongside his teenage daughter Pearl (who incidentally is a whale, not a crab).
- Inspired by Real Life
Mr. Krabs is unique in the SpongeBob SquarePants universe as he is the only character to be based (at least loosely) on a real person.
Long before the show began, creator Stephen Hillenburg worked in a real-life seafood restaurant, where his boss was a muscular, redheaded, former military cook. He took these traits and adapted them into the form of Mr. Krabs, but there is one big difference between the two; Hillenberg’s real-life boss wasn’t greedy, whereas Mr. Krabs most certainly is.
- All About The Money
His obsession with money is the driving force for almost everything he does. His number one priority is increasing his bank balance, and he doesn’t think twice about hurting a few people along the way to do it.
But his pursuit of wealth often gets him into trouble and leads him to make decisions that he later regrets. It also affects the way he runs his business, and he routinely prioritizes his finances over his customers at the Krusty Krab.
The way he treats his long-serving staff is borderline abusive at times. He works SpongeBob and Squidward to the bone while paying them a measly sum way below the minimum wage.
Luckily for him, SpongeBob loves his job and would do it for free if he had to, but Squidward is less than pleased with the arrangement.
Mr. Krabs’ penny-pinching ways see him go to great lengths to avoid losing money, so much so that he lost both of his arms and suffered a major head trauma while trying to retrieve a dime out of the kitchen sink in the memorable TV episode, “Squid’s Day Off.”
- Mr. Krabs isn’t Always So Crabby
Despite his greediness and obsession with wealth, Mr. Krabs does have a softer side to him. He’s a devoted father to Pearl and would do anything to make her happy.
He’s even been known to show appreciation for his employees from time to time, recognizing that without SpongeBob and Squidward, his business would be doomed.
- The Krabby Patty Secret Recipe
Over the years, Mr.Krabs has fought tirelessly to keep his secret formula for his prized Krabby Patties from his arch-nemesis, Sheldon Plankton.
Plankton is the owner of the failing restaurant Chum Bucket, and he’s forever concocting schemes to steal the recipe. But of course, in his boundless greed, Mr. Krabs is determined to defend it to the death.
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5. Sheldon J. Plankton
Sheldon J. Plankton, or Plankton for short, is the primary antagonist in the SpongeBob universe.
As his name suggests, he is a form of the planktonic copepod, with two large antennae, one eye, and a single thick and extremely prominent eyebrow.
- The Worst Restaurant in Town
Plankton runs the failing Chum Bucket restaurant alongside his waterproof computer wife Karen, where he serves up cheap imitation seafood that nobody seems to enjoy. His business is perpetually in crisis, and he rarely gets customers through the door.
His own failure as a restaurant owner means he despises his successful rival Mr.Krabs, and he is determined to steal his secret Krabby Patty recipe even if it kills him.
- From Friend to Foe
Plankton and Mr. Krabs have a long history that stretches back much further than their business rivalry.
During their childhood, they were the best of friends and inseparable at school. Born on the exact same day, on August 21, 1961, they were both considered outcasts by the other kids, and so they stuck together like glue.
Eventually, they realized that the key to reaching the social status they craved was through making lots of money. And so, the pair launched a pop-up restaurant beside the local dump and began selling hamburger patties to passersby.
But their friendship and their business relationship didn’t last much longer, and a heated dispute over the secret Krabby Patty formula turned them into enemies overnight. Thus began their bitter feud, which still continues to this day.
- Plankton; An Evil Genius?
Despite his tiny planktonic brain, Plankton is one of the most intelligent residents of Bikini Bottom. But rather than use his intellectual powers for good, he focuses solely on scheming and colluding to ruin Mr. Krabs’ business and his life.
Yet despite his crooked ways, Plankton has occasionally been known to display a softer side. He adores his computer wife, Karen, and his son Chip, and he develops a surprisingly strong bond with his pet amoeba, Spot.
Still, his bitterness, jealousy, and determination to defeat Mr. Krabs always win out, and it seems there’s little chance of Plankton ever turning over a new leaf.
6. Sandra Jennifer Olivia “Sandy” Cheeks
Unlike most of the characters in the SpongeBob universe, Sandy Cheeks isn’t native to the ocean.
Many years ago, this Texan squirrel came down from the surface to study the aquatic life below. Now she lives in a specially constructed air-filled treedome and uses a full diving suit which she built herself to survive in the underwater world of Bikini Bottom.
Sandy is a cowgirl at heart who speaks with a thick southern drawl. She’s immensely proud of her Texan heritage, and she loves to reminisce about her rodeo days and her old life in the Lone Star State.
- A Multi-talented Mammal
Even though she’s not a born ocean dweller, Sandy is the most capable of all the SpongeBob cast, and she excels at pretty much everything she turns her hand to.
She’s a master of karate, a talented singer and musician, and she’s lightning with a lasso. And as a full-fledged scientist often found performing complex experiments and inventing novel machines, she’s also one of the smartest residents of Bikini Bottom.
Sandy’s impressive natural ability means she thinks pretty highly of herself, and she has a strong competitive streak. But unlike most of her friends, she’s also very level-headed, kind, and caring, and she often helps her friends out of sticky situations.
Conclusion
Just like the TV show, the SpongeBob SquarePants books have an eclectic cast of complex characters, each with their own unique set of traits and fascinating backstory to tell.
In this post, I’ve chosen just a few of these dynamic characters, but there are many more with equally interesting life stories and personalities to explore.
Who is your favorite SpongeBob SquarePants character, and why? Let me know in the comments below!