Bored Bill
Liz Pichon
Little Tiger

Bill is feeling bored, exceedingly so. unlike his owner Mrs Pickle who likes to keep herself busy all day: the activities she enjoys – reading, gardening, cooking, kung fu and cleaning, are all very boring to Bill. When Mrs Pickle suggests a long walk, you can imagine her floppy-eared pooch’s response and he refuses to move. Mrs Pickle gets her way however and drags him out of the house and into the chilly, windy weather, Bill still grumbling.

All of a sudden a great gust of wind lifts them both skywards and Mrs P. vanishes leaving Bill attempting unsuccessfully to hold onto a tree branch. Instead he whizzes off into space and he lands on a purple planet inhabited by aliens. His thinking that he’s in for an exciting adventure is soon replaced by, you’ve guessed it – boredom. The aliens consider exploring boring and Bill hates their food; in fact now Bill is more bored than ever before and he yearns for Mrs Pickle and her yummy food. He decides to try and engage the aliens in some fun by cooking them a tasty meal like those his owner creates; he shows them some of her kung fu moves and they play some games. No more boredom but Bill wants Mrs Pickle and home. Fortunately he’s offered a ride on the aliens’ spacecraft and on landing he discovers he is now famous, but Bill is a changed dog.

We never get to see Mrs Pickle’s face in Liz Pichon’s wonderfully whimsical scenes that complement her wacky text which carries a message about thinking carefully before complaining about being bored.

by the same creator is:

Three Horrid Pigs
Little Tiger

This is a fun twist on the favourite traditional tale. Herein the Mother Pig is so fed up with the terrible behaviour of her offspring that she packs three bags and send them out to fend for themselves. The first little pig helps himself to some of the cows’ straw and builds himself a house; the second takes twigs from the nest-building birds, and as for pig number three, he’s so lazy he just moves into a chicken coop, forcing some of the residents to vacate their home. Each time a little pig finds himself sans a sturdy residence, along comes the kindly wolf, a builder no less, to offer assistance and each time he’s sent packing.

It’s not long before the little pigs’ homes are destroyed, the materials being reclaimed by their original owners, so come nightfall, the three invade the wolf’s house via the chimney. The wolf hears them and puts a big pot on to boil …Is that the end of the horrid pigs or will they finally see the error of their ways and cease all their huffing and puffing threats?

Witty details abound in the visuals and with their message about kindness and cooperation, the words are great to read aloud to little humans.