Silli's Sheep

by Tiffany Stone, Louis Thomas

For fans of Sophie's Squash and other super-silly picture books, here is the endearing story of a man named Silli who tries to tame the wind in ridiculous ways. Silli lives in the middle of a meadow, in the open air. One morning, a gust of wind pays a visit--brrrr! What if the wind comes to stay? If only Silli could find some sheep, he'd have wool to knit a sweater to keep him warm. Luckily, he spots five large "sheep" up on a hill--perfect! It's just too bad they're resistant to herding and their wool is incredibly hard. But when Silli leans against them, they block the wind and keep him warm. . . . Perhaps he can build a shelter made of sheep? And so he resourcefully arranges his sturdy sheep (which are actually sheep-shaped rocks) into a little hut, and is finally warm and dry. This charming story--crafted in the tradition of folkloric characters who are well-meaning, likeable, and also a bit ridiculous--is sure to have a ton of kid appeal.

Genres: Picture Books, Humor, Animals, Childrens, Fiction

32 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 4, 2020

About the author

Tiffany Stone was born in Quebec and named after one of James Bond’s girlfriends. When she was two, she travelled by train to British Columbia, where she has lived ever since.

Tiffany considers herself a word nerd and proudly admits that when she was young, she and her mum used to look up word origins in the dictionary for fun! Nowadays, she especially enjoys writing poems that rhyme and stories that incorporate plenty of puns.

Meeting a real-live author when she was in Grade 6 inspired Tiffany to pursue her dream of being a writer. And writing her own verse for Dennis Lee’s “Alligator Pie” as a school assignment made her fall in love with poetry. (Her verse was about alligator cake.)

After earning her BFA in Creative Writing at UBC, Tiffany tried out several backup careers, including music academy administrator, bakery prep person (too early!), and veterinary hospital receptionist. She even trained as a hairdresser.

But in 2004, Tiffany’s dream of being an author finally came true. Her published works now include three collections of humorous verse for kids and more than a dozen poems in children’s magazines, as well as poetry on a plaque at a beach and on Vancouver buses. She loves to perform her poems at schools and libraries and sometimes works as a freelance children’s book editor.

Tiffany lives in Whonnock, BC, with her family and many pets. She is constantly inspired by trees.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silli doesn't need much to keep him happy-- just a pack of tools and the world around him. But lately, the wind has been blowing gusts day after day! If Silli finds a sheep, he can make a sweater to stay warm. The problem is, the sheep he finds seem to be as hard as stone. Will he ever find a way to keep cozy as winter approaches? Charming, simplistic, and imaginative.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Created with ink, gouache, and colored pencils, the illustrations in this picture book complement the story of a man who mistakes rocks for sheep. Absurdity reigns supreme as Silli searches for a way to cope with the chilly wind that's come his way. He looks through all his belongings but finds nothing that he can use to stave off the cold. When he happens to notice some fluffy clouds in the sky, he has a brainstorm that he could use the wool from sheep to knit a sweater. This leads to several problems as he mistakes large rocks for sheep. But these sheep won't move, and he has to drag them down the mountainside. Although he solves his problem, it won't be the way that he had originally planned. The last page and image will elicit laughter from readers as they imagine what Silli might do in order to have some hot chocolate to drink. Although this particular story isn't my cup of tea (or hot chocolate), Silli's silliness will be appeal to some young readers.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silli lives out in the open meadow, with nothing but the sunshine during the day, and the moonbeams at night for a bed. When the weather changes, and a stiff wind comes, Silli decides he needs a sheep to make a wool sweater, but what he thinks are sheep aren't, and the silliness continues as Silli remains silly.

[Ashley Ewert · Rating 4 out of 5]

His name says it all! Silli is well silly! This guy has everything he needs in his sack, except something to stay warm when the wind comes--but he has an idea. He is going to find sheep to get wool to make yarn to make a sweater. But when the sheep don't cooperate he has other plans to stay warm with his rock sheep!

[Pi]

Fajna, dowcipna książeczka o Silli, który chciał sobie zrobić sweter z owczej wełny... ale nie mógł znaleźć owiec, a jak już je znalazł - to to raczej nie były owce...
W tej opowieści podoba mi się poczucie humoru i ilustracje - są naprawdę w dechę! Lubię taką kreskę - z pozoru prostą i może nawet niechlujną, ale tak naprawdę, to czysta zabawa.

[Miss Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silli is hoping that if he can find come sheep to make wool...wool into yarn....yarn into a sweater to keep him warm. He does find some sheep but unfortunately, they are actually sheep shaped boulders. But he does find a way for them to help him stay warm.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor Silli is as hopelessly and hilariously clueless about rocks as he is about sheep.

[Cindy Dobrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silli or Silly, however you spell it there are sure to be giggles during the reading of this one...along with shouts of "That's not a sheep, Silli!!!"

[Lisa D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute book!

[Tee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly & Cute

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silli searches for a sheep to keep him warm at night.

[Abby Johnson]

Silly to the point of nonsense. Not my favorite, but young readers may disagree! Try this on kids who love SUPER silly noodlehead stories.

[A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely lives up to the name -- a silly premise, and one that will resonate with the right reader. Silli gets chilly and sets out to find sheep whose wool will keep him warm. Several large boulders stand in, but Silli ends up toasty in the end.

[Joy Keil · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's silly...

[K.A. Wiggins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gently humorous, the childlike protagonist is sure to connect with the littles.

[Debra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rocks wrongly seen as sheep, but providing shelter.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silli is trying to herd sheep... which are actually large rocks. Humorous and strange all rolled into one. I enjoyed the style of the illustrations. And also the actual sheep at the end.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found in L4L Volume 120.