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Silly BillyAnthony Browne
Silly Billy
by Anthony Browne
Billy worries about everything at night, until his grandmother gives him a matchbox of tiny dolls to worry on his behalf.
A story about children and families, gentle and thoughtful in tone. We would put it with children of 3–6, and at a reading age of about 5 for reading alone.
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We have not flagged any content in this one that a parent would usually want warning about.
Our take on this book
Billy is a worrier — about hats, shoes, clouds, rain, everything — and lies awake at night with his anxieties, until his grandmother gives him a handful of tiny Guatemalan worry dolls to tell his troubles to, so he can put them under his pillow and finally sleep. Anthony Browne, a former Children's Laureate, treats a worried child with complete seriousness and great tenderness, and the surreal, slightly unsettling pictures capture exactly how big small worries can feel in the dark. When Billy starts worrying about the worry dolls themselves, he finds his own clever solution, which quietly hands the child reader a sense of agency. There is nothing frightening in it; it is gentle and thoughtful throughout. For a three- to six-year-old who lies awake fretting, it is a genuinely useful book as well as a lovely one — and many families go on to make or buy the little dolls it describes.
If they like this, try these
Chosen by matching age, reading age, tone and subject — not by what is selling.
Perfectly NormanTom Percival
GorillaAnthony Browne
DoggerShirley Hughes
Ruby's WorryTom Percival
The Paper DollsJulia Donaldson
Alfie Gets in FirstShirley Hughes
Or let them write their own.
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