Silly Billy

by Anthony Browne

A funny, sympathetic antidote to worry from a Hans Christian Andersen Medalist

Billy worries about everything, from shoes that might march out the window to giant birds that might carry him away. One night on a visit to Grandma's, Billy is so anxious that he can't sleep. But Grandma has just the thing for a boy like Billy — tiny, colorful worry dolls, made to do his worrying for him. That night when Billy puts the dolls under his pillow, he sleeps like a log. But soon it dawns on Billy that something is not quite right — now he has all those worry dolls to worry about! Leave it to Anthony Browne, with his surreal illustrations and a final clever twist, to come up with a solution that puts Billy at ease at last.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Emotion, Fiction, Family, Mental Health, Friendship

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 4, 2006

About the author

Anthony Browne, a Hans Christian Andersen Medalist, is the author-illustrator of many acclaimed books for children, including Silly Billy and Little Beauty. He lives in Kent, England.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Browne gets it, unlike Billy's parents. A worrier is such by nature, and logically pointing out that there's nothing to fear is not going to help. But worry dolls might. I like the twist in this worry doll tale. Author's note should only be a springboard to a family's investigation of Mayan/ Guatemalan history and to construction of one's own collection of dolls.

Recommended, despite the inappropriate* title.

(*Or is it apt, and I'm missing something? It's just that the story isn't about Billy's supposed 'silliness' at all, that I can see....)

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billy is a worrywart, and his worries keep him awake at night. Then his grandma gives him a handful of worry dolls. Billy tells the dolls his concerns, and finally gets a good night's sleep. But, then . . . he starts to worry about the dolls . . .

Cute story, highlighted by Browne's wonderful artwork.

[Gabby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was just in a lesson, showing children worry dolls and a friend told me about this book. I really loved it and I know the children will as well. It’s amazing how open children are about their worries and I feel this book helps to promote discussion about what worries us.

[Jamie Johnson Leach · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned something new about worry dolls from Guatemala.

[Ahdeelah Hussain]

Silly Billy. By Anthony Browne.

This story is about Billy who worried about a lot of things. One day he stayed at his Grans and she said she used to worry as well and she gave him dolls. She said you tell your worries to the dolls so they can do all the worrying for you. Once Billy told the dolls all his worries he was able to sleep. However after a few nights he began to worry again and this time he was worrying that the dolls had so much to worry about. Billy then came up with the idea of making the dolls their own worry dolls which he did and he placed them all under his pillow and they went to bed peacefully without any worries.

Worry dolls came from the Central American country of Guatemala and till today children in Guatemala trust their dolls to take away their worries as they go to sleep. This a great book that you can use with children when discussing worries and concerns that they might have. It can be part of a circle time activity or PSHE. The children can also make their own worry dolls that they can talk to. This can really help them especially the shy little children that we may have in Early Years.

[Lucy Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book was an extremely easy yet effective read. It was only at the end of the book when I realised that ‘worry dolls’ are a Guatemalan tradition! This would be excellent to share with a class of children, especially if you know an individual is going through a tough time or whether there is a larger-scale problem in the world. A classroom idea could be creating these ‘worry dolls’ or another ‘worry’ object for each of the children for when times are challenging to ease the pressure. Doing this in the classroom could lead nicely onto researching traditions from all around the world.

[mari · Rating 5 out of 5]

una storia molto originale, billy fa brutti pensieri su qualsiasi cosa ma da nonna troverà una soluzione tenera ai suoi problemi con un finale all'insegna dell'altruismo e della creatività; illustrazioni meravigliose, dai contorni dark anche se colorate e in stile vintage.

[June · Rating 3 out of 5]

My children enjoy this book about a (not) silly, (very) generous little boy and his wise grandma.

[Dee-Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wavered between 4 and 5 stars. In the end 5 stars won because it was good to read a simple story to my boys which illustrated that people can worry about different, strange things and it can effect your sleep, moods etc but it can be overcome, even if it is with worry dolls. I think I need some of those dolls myself!

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a lovable book about anxiety and worry dolls. Great humor in it.

[Isobel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to help children settle their worries and make them not scared or frightened.

[Cassandra Meléndez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Qué bonito hablar de los quitapesares⭐✨

[Abi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the simplicity of this book, particularly as it depicts a complex theme like anxiety/worry.
I think it’s a lovely book that shows children everyone worries and the importance of talking about it with a friend or someone/something you trust

[Claudia Pastor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dije "no voy a llorar, no voy a llorar", pero con Browne no se puede hacer esa promesa. Leer a este autor es como volver a casa 😌

Si tú también eres preocupón, este libro es especialmente para ti ❤

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a lovely story for supporting children to share their worries. The book shows a realistic representation of what it is like for a child to worry and provides such a simple but effective solution to overcoming worrying.

The illustrations are bright and engaging, allowing children to visually understand the story.
The book also introduces fun facts of how worry dolls have been used for generations in South America.

[Jacob Ogilby · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many instances where you could us this book, really cute.

[Leonardo Gentile · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Ramón Preocupón" es una buena alternativa para los chicos que empiezan a amigarse con los libros. El héroe de este cuento es Ramón, un chico que sueña pesadillas y tiene miedo al irse a dormir. Cito un párrafo: "Hace algún tiempo, los niños de Guatemala empezaron a hacer muñecos "quitapesares" para contarles sus penas o preocupaciones a ellos antes de colocarlos debajo de la almohada a la hora de dormir. Creían que al despertar estarían menos preocupados pues los muñecos se habrían llevado todas sus penas mientras dormían. Los "quitapesares" están hechos de pequeños trozos de madera, retazos de tela e hilo. Todavía los niños de Guatemala creen en el poder de los "quitapesares". Esta tradición se ha extendido a todo el mundo, sobre todo a Centro y Sudamérica." Tanto se han extendido que en el norte argentino se venden quitapesares, pero también conozco una chica que no podía dormir por sus penas, hizo su propio muñeco, le puso un nombre y ahora cada noche le cuenta sus secretos y logra dormir mejor.
Lo lindo de este libro es que deja la puerta abierta para proponerle a los chicos que fabriquen sus propios quitapesares, los dejen bajo la almohada y se sientan acompañados cuando algo los preocupe.

[Anna Nerkowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have previously enjoyed reading other Anthony Browne stories to children and found that they particularly enjoy the illustrations. The front cover of 'Silly Billy' caught my attention with its large, colourful title.

The story is about Billy. Billy is quite the worrier and has trouble sleeping at night. He stays with his grandma one night and shares this problem with her... She has just the cure... 'worry dolls'. Billy shares his worries with the dolls and finds that sleepless nights become a thing of the past.

I really enjoyed this story and think it would be great to read to a year one or two class. The illustrations are fantastic and really add to the enjoyment of the story. I think this book could be used to help any children who may be similar to Billy and have trouble sleeping. I also like the fact that at the back of the book there is some information on the origin of 'worry dolls' which I think children would find interesting to listen to.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billy finds it hard to get to sleep. As he lies in bed, thoughts about clouds and giant birds trouble him. Everyone has tried to help, but it’s only after turning to grandma for help that he gets the help he needs to never miss a wink of sleep again.

After Billy has his first good night sleep this book really made me smile as I discovered the lengths he went to to ensure everyone else has a good sleep too. Children will find themselves absorbed with Billy’s story as well as learning about an element of Guatemalan culture, which Browne develops greatly and even provides some additional information about at the end of the book.

Essentially I see this as story about opening up and sharing problems as we discover in the end that Billy isn’t so silly after all. This is a perfect bed time story for pre-school children. But if you do decide to read this to them, they may just end up asking you for the same thing grandma gave Billy!

[Karolina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silly Billy is a great picture book to be used during RE/PSHE or circle time in the Early Years or KS1. It tells a story of a boy who worried about absolutely everything and his worries grew bigger and bigger. One night, when Billy stayed at his grandmother’s house, he couldn’t sleep again. However, this time he decided to get up and tell his grandmother about his worries. He was given a set of worry dolls to tell them all his worries. However, then Billy started worrying about the worry dolls as he gave them too many worries! He decided to make plenty of worry dolls for the worry dolls. Finally, this worked and everyone was happy. The story shows that by sharing our problems with other people, we make them disappear. It can teach the children that no matter how big our problems are, there is always someone who can help them overcome any difficulties.

[Muireann Mc Gowan Fallon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly Billy is a cute story which would be perfect for helping children who have trouble sleeping. Billy is a little boy who is so worried about everything that he can't sleep. Then one night his grandmother gives him his very own tiny, colourful worry dolls who will do his worrying for him. So before he goes to bed, he tells all of his worries to the dolls and has a great nights sleep. But soon it dawns on Billy that now he has all those worry dolls to worry about!
This book is a great resource which could be used to reassure children that there are always ways in which to deal with their worries. It teaches children the importance of sharing our problems with other people in order to make them disappear.

[Ralf Urbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another one of my favorites because of the lessons it conveys about helping children focus on other things to relieve the little stressors in their lives like going to sleep. Basic illustrations were used but were also very effective in catching the moment when Billy is upset. I was pleasently surprised to read the origins of the Worry Dolls that were used to help Billy given by the author at the end of the book. Inspired me to use this idea for a possible project to help the children I personally work with!(

[Hayley Irwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly Billy is about a young boy who cant sleep, which is something children can relate to. It also teaches children the best way to deal with worries, that it is often better to share them with others like the way billy does by making worry dolls. The colourful illustrations make this a book children remember which could also be useful across the curriculum in EYFS and KS1, e.g. D&T, Art etc.

[CT Mahoney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two of the most important features of Anthony Browne’s picture book, Silly Billy, may go unnoticed to the average reader because they are nearly hidden in the summary and the back end pages of the picture book. In small print, in the beginning of the book, there is a summary: “To help with his anxiety, Billy uses the worry dolls his grandmother recommends, but he finds that they do not quite solve his problem.” Although this is a general description of the plotline of the picture book, there is a more complex theme here. It is an altruistic theme. Browne takes it one step further: Helping others can help yourself. When Billy makes worry dolls for others, he begins to not worry himself.
The reasoning, choice, and origins of the native Guatemala color scheme and patterns are explained in the end pages. In the back, on an end page, there is an illustration of a Guatemalan worry doll—dressed in the same colors as many of the colors in the book. This color scheme is present in frames and in characters throughout the book. On the same page, there is additional information: “To this day, children in Guatemala often trust their worry dolls to take away their worries as they sleep, and this custom has spread across the world.”—which gives the story some historical context. The picture book is decorated with colorful Guatemalan native patterns in This picture book’s front cover is black with colorful text lettering on the top and white lettering on the bottom text. I found it interesting that Anthony Browne is also the illustrator of this picture book.
Many of the pages of Anthony Browne’s Silly Billy are illustrated with native colors in the borders and the fonts are large print. There is a contrast in colors when the worry dolls are presented in the book. On these pages the border is white, so the colorful dolls are in contrast to the background. In the book, these pages are “worry-free” pages because these are moments when Billy is content (and worry-free). In relation to “worry-free” pages, there are two touching scenes where Billy is comforted by his parents. On this page, Billy is with his mother on one side and on the other side of the page Billy is with his father. Even with their comfort, he continues to have trouble with his worrisome mind. The story is told from a third person point of view perspective. Overall, the human figures are drawn with friendly, happy faces and expressions, but there are moments where Billy is in a despairing scene. For example, there is one scene where the protagonist is presented as a small character in a large bed and room that is relatively colorless. This is one of the few pages where the illustration run-on to both pages. Within the layout of the story, there is only one other part where the background illustration spreads over to the next page in the same manner. These sections of the story were drawn like that because they are turning points in the story. These are the times that he struggles with his doubts.
Billy’s conflict is interesting because it is an internal conflict; he wrestles with his worry. The main character is centered in the page, so the reader can see his facial expressions (supporting his feelings and the text). Happiness and comfort comes to Billy (and his facial expression) when spends time with his parents. At the conclusion of the story, after he is creating worry dolls for others, Billy is shown to be happy again.

[Cat Strawberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for kids who naturally worry a lot. Billy worries about a lot of things, hats, shoes and clouds to name a few. Billy feels silly but then he speaks to his Grandma and she tells him a special secret. The paperback is roughly A4 in size, though wider, and is filled with thick glossy pages of colourful illustrations.

I like this book and the message it has, especially because Billy’s cure for his worries is something so simple and that has been used for generations in South America. I don’t really want to spoil the story by telling you what Billy uses to stop worrying but it’s a clever and simple thing. The story of ‘Silly Billy’ is generally very simple and although Billy is ‘cured’ of his worrying in the middle of the book, the tale isn’t over and there’s something funny that happens towards the end. The ending of the story is satisfying and I like the fact that there’s a message encouraging kids to share this ‘cure’ for their worries and the fact that it’s so easy for kids to make themselves.

The images in the story are quite simple and yet tell the story very well. I like the pictures of Billy’s worries, they have a slightly surreal feel to them such as shoes walking themselves out of the window. I also love how colourful some of the characters on the last pages are, it fits well with the colours on the book cover.

Overall this is a great book for kids especially those that worry about a lot of things, and a great book for adults to read to kids if they want to discuss any worries kids might have.
-Thanks to Walker Books for a free copy (as part of the Anthony Browne Collection).

[Sue Winson · Rating 5 out of 5]

23-month old little-AJ enjoys this book, although I am not quite sure that he understands what "worry" means (or maybe he does?). He loves the page with a lot of colourful worry dolls in cool costumes. He giggles whenever I read out all the doll's names quickly (Mandy, Ronnie, Enid, Elvis, Harry, Mo, Ian, Justin, Rosie...). It feels silly, but hilarious. Little-AJ kept asking for this to be repeated by screaming "more!". We had fun reading this book, and we both love the illustrations of Anthony Browne.

Billy worried about things, from flying hats, running shoes, looming cloud, to flooded room and giants birds. His problem solved when grandma introduced him to the worry dolls, a little tradition from Central America country of Guatemala where children tell a worry to each doll before sleep. For a while, this worked well, until Billy started to worry about the worries that he had given to the dolls. The ending is sweet and lovely. I love Billy, and I don't find him silly at all.

I like books that introduce us fun facts of certain culture, and I like how the author does not belittle the worry of the boy. Yes, some of the "worries" might sound silly, but he accepts it as a genuine concerns for the boy. It's no use asking him "not to worry" (because he still will). It's a better advice to ask him to "share" his worries. This is a little piece of nice tip to all parents with a worried kid.

Blog review here: https://storypleasemummy.wordpress.co...

[Alisha N. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billy is a worried lad who worries about every aspect of his life. His parents reassure him that it's just his overactive imagination. They tell him that they love him, will be there for him, and there's nothing to worry about. But when he spends the night at grandma's house, she empathizes with him and offers him a solution to try for his worries. Will the solution she suggests work? Sorry, you'll have to read to find out!
The author has very simple character development, traits, and plot for young readers. this would make an excellent selection to teach plot and also theme. The themes of the importance of family, family tradition and finding ways to face and overcome fears are prevalent in this charming and witty fiction book. There is a cultural reference to dolls in Guatemala. The characters are illustrated in watercolor that makes them so true to life, they almost look like photographs instead of drawings. Direct characterization is a technique that the author uses to reveal the characters' traits. This would be an excellent interactive read aloud as well as a reading strategy lesson.

[Cate Andrews · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't like the title! Silly implies doing things wrongly, without thinking or a behavior that's not right or misbehaving, and irrational without knowledge of anxiety. Anxiety is common and debilitating. Shaming an anxious person is not knowledge it's simply determining and deciding for the person the "right" behavior for them and their Anxiety. Anxiety is not always a decision and not always manageable and in this story Guatemalan dolls are one answer to managing and caring for a child, Billy who also cares and is sensitive. Silly sounds insensitive. Billy's sensitivity is mature; and his behavior "model" and brave. To create dolls for dolls to care for those who take away his worries so they don't experience vicarious trauma presents me with knowledge of a child's distanciation and critical distance: he thinks about the impact of his worries and behaviour and tries to right this rather than simply dump and leave, cuddle and forget. His behaviour is also closeness, as well as warm , tender and revealing life for a child feeling isolated with Anxiety. Sleeplessness solved without medication is a dream, and the worry dolls are one solution closer to dreams.

[Becs · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book tackles some of the issues many small children, and some bigger ones too, encounter. Filled with worries often much bigger than themselves, children frequently fret over staying in other people's houses, scary monsters or imagined situations both obscure and possible. This book tackles that realistic representation of exactly what being an anxious child looks like, and not only that - it offers solutions.

Based upon the Guatemalan tradition of creating worry dolls for small children to tell each of their worries too and tuck under their pillows to carry the weight instead of the child doing so, this book shows Billy (a prolific worrier) as he makes lots of worry dolls to help squirrel away his fears and face a good nights sleep!

A really brilliant concept, filled with fun drawings and colour - a take home message for all little worries and a touch of education too. I would happily recommend it to all small readers.

ARC provided free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly Billy is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Anthony Browne, which is a book about Billy, a worrywart, and how he conquered them with Worry Dolls!

The text is rather simple and straightforward. It is a story of a worrywart that cannot seem to go to bed without worrying, despite his parents’ reassurance that they would not let anything happen to him. The illustrations are drawn rather well and depict the text rather well.

The premise of the book is rather straightforward. It is about a boy named Billy and he worries about everything and anything that it hinders his sleep. While sleeping at his grandmother, she gives young Billy some worry dolls. From then on, Billy manages to sleep well, but then he starts worrying about his Worry Dolls and so the next day, he makes Worry Dolls for his Worry Dolls.

All in all, Silly Billy is a wonderful story about how to handle one's worries.