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Silly Billy ISBN: 9781406305760
Browne, Anthony
Published by Walker, 2006
This story stems from the Central American country Guatemala, where children make worry dolls fom wood and scraps. Billy is a really heavy-duty worrier, and his worries are unusual to say the least - hats, shoes, clouds, rain - and giant birds. Mum and dad are reassuring, but it is only when he spends the night at grandma's and confesses his worries to her that the answer is found. She gives him her worry dolls that she had as a child and explains that if he tells each one a worry and puts them under his pillow, the worries will go away. Which they do. It works a treat until he begins to worry about the poor dolls and all the worries he has unloaded on them. His solution is a good one, and he and the dolls all sleep worry-free afterwards. Browne's 1940s style illustrations are very special, full of colour and detail, and anxious children could well find at least a partial answer to their concerns.
Age: 4+