Written and illustrated by: Barry Falls.

A richly illustrated laugh-out-loud tale with a gentle message

There once was a boy called Billy McGill

who lived by himself at the top of a hill.

He spent every day in his house all alone

for Billy McGill liked to be on his own…

One day Billy hears the squeak of a mouse, which destroys his peaceful existence. So he gets a cat to catch the mouse. But the cat and the mouse make friends. So he gets a dog to chase the cat. But they all play together. So then he gets a bear… then a tiger… and on it goes, until Billy’s house is so filled with animals that he has to move out. Will he find that he still craves peace and quiet, or is it better to have company and friends? This a laugh-out-loud story of growing chaos, with a subtle message about how it’s good to have friends.

Credit: Eoin McLaughlin. Have you read our Q&A with Eoin?