Alone!

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. 

But life doesn't always turn out how you plan it…

Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2022!

One day Billy hears the squeak of a mouse – destroying his perfectly 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 too. So then he gets a bear … then a tiger … and on it goes, until Billy's house is so filled with characters that he has to move out. Will he find that he still craves peace and quiet, or is it actually quite lovely to have company and friends?

The brilliant second book from Barry Falls is a laugh-out-loud tale of growing chaos, with a heart-warming message about how it's good to have friends.

“'[A] cracking picture book... With brilliant narrative illustrations and catchy rhyming verse, this story is perfect for reading aloud' - School Reading List 'Wonderful play between image and text! Rhythm, rhyme, humour, an invitation to explore and look closely and a lovely message to boot. All very carefully and lovingly put together' - Mat Tobin, education influencer '[A] beautiful, funny and thoughtfully created picture book which will inspire little ones to embrace life, however hard that sometimes seems, and to relish the rewards of living happily together. With its quirky cast of characters and gorgeous, rhyming story - packed with Falls' vibrant, highly detailed and colour-soaked illustrations - this is the perfect book to read out loud and help children understand that life is fun... even when it's not running smoothly!' - Lancashire Evening Post 'The rhymes and the clever and funny illustrations are wonderful entertainment, and the whole is an excellent romp' - Books for Keeps magazine 'What a truly lovely story, fully of delightful characters with lessons for us all to learn. The story is beautifully told in rhyme that makes the story flow along with pace and humour ... The illustrations are delightful and really bring out the character of each of the animals and people.' - Armadillo Magazine 'Ivy finds this heartwarming book really funny and she's drawn to the bold, brightly coloured illustrations. The rhyme scheme is really tight so it's an absolute pleasure to read aloud. I've lost count of the number of times we've read it at bedtime since it arrived!' - Ivy's Library 'There's much to enjoy about this book. Barry Falls' quirky illustrations are a wry delight.' - Red Reading Hub 'The bright illustrations and rhyming text make this a great tale to share with others' - Storytime Magazine 'We LOVE this book! It's funny, heartwarming and gorgeously illustrated. A definite winner for us!' - Rosie's Library”

'[A] cracking picture book… With brilliant narrative illustrations and catchy rhyming verse, this story is perfect for reading aloud'

– School Reading List

'Wonderful play between image and text! Rhythm, rhyme, humour, an invitation to explore and look closely and a lovely message to boot. All very carefully and lovingly put together'

– Mat Tobin, education influencer

'[A] beautiful, funny and thoughtfully created picture book which will inspire little ones to embrace life, however hard that sometimes seems, and to relish the rewards of living happily together. With its quirky cast of characters and gorgeous, rhyming story – packed with Falls’ vibrant, highly detailed and colour-soaked illustrations – this is the perfect book to read out loud and help children understand that life is fun… even when it’s not running smoothly!'

– Lancashire Evening Post

'The rhymes and the clever and funny illustrations are wonderful entertainment, and the whole is an excellent romp'

– Books for Keeps magazine

'What a truly lovely story, fully of delightful characters with lessons for us all to learn. The story is beautifully told in rhyme that makes the story flow along with pace and humour … The illustrations are delightful and really bring out the character of each of the animals and people.'

– Armadillo Magazine

'Ivy finds this heartwarming book really funny and she’s drawn to the bold, brightly coloured illustrations. The rhyme scheme is really tight so it’s an absolute pleasure to read aloud. I’ve lost count of the number of times we’ve read it at bedtime since it arrived!'

– Ivy's Library

'There’s much to enjoy about this book. Barry Falls’ quirky illustrations are a wry delight.'

– Red Reading Hub

'The bright illustrations and rhyming text make this a great tale to share with others'

– Storytime Magazine

'We LOVE this book! It’s funny, heartwarming and gorgeously illustrated. A definite winner for us!'

– Rosie's Library

Barry Falls is an illustrator, living in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He graduated from Ulster University in 2005 and works for a range of clients in publishing, design and advertising. His clients include The New York Times, Orange, Unicef, NSPCC and The Guardian. He has won multiple awards and lectures in illustration at Ulster University.

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. But life doesn't always turn out how you plan it... Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2022! One day Billy hears the squeak of a mouse - destroying his perfectly 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 too. So then he gets a bear ... then a tiger ... and on it goes, until Billy's house is so filled with characters that he has to move out. Will he find that he still craves peace and quiet, or is it actually quite lovely to have company and friends? The brilliant second book from Barry Falls is a laugh-out-loud tale of growing chaos, with a heart-warming message about how it's good to have friends.

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