The Ballad of Billy McFee A sea shanty to read or sing

The viral Wellerman earworm is back in this funny and uplifting children's picture book!-----"A humorous story with a strong message of not giving up and working together ... highly recommended!" -The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
-----"Kids will enjoy the bright, full-page illustrations as well as the rhyming. They'll also learn about committing to and completing a task, along with ignoring naysayers. But it's not only children who will enjoy this book. Parents will like it, too... - Joe Wisinski for Readers' Favorite
-----This heartwarming picture book is a highly original concept that combines all the messages and storylines into one big picture while imparting critical social messages to children." Literary Titan
-----"As soon as I turned to the first page I naturally started singing it! It's so catchy and has been flawlessly written. I love that the book's purpose isn't just to entertain; it also has important lessons hidden within it. -Amy Louise Hill for Readers' Favorite
-----"...the perfect opportunity to teach the very young about concepts of teamwork, positivity, determination, and diversity as a crew of sea denizens try to help. The lively rhymes, appearances of different sea creatures, and underlying lessons about overcoming adversity are nicely done, teaching kids about both sea shanties and cooperation as they sing along with the nautical effort. - D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
-----"The story includes puns and funny lines ... It's all very clever and the plot allows each individual reader to follow their own journey as they read (or sing) the ballad. -Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite

Billy McFee is a colorful and resourceful young fish who dreams of sailing a ship that he found stuck in the muck at the bottom of the sea. Billy sees potential in the ship while everyone else swims right past. Billy struggles to free the ship while shrugging off negative comments from onlookers (a pair of naysayer clams). When Billy cannot move the ship by himself, he becomes a leader and builds a crew of diverse friends: a friendly shark, a big strong whale, and an intellectual crab. Billy and his friends sing as they work, just as sailors of yore sang traditional folk songs to synchronize their efforts. But unlike many old sea shanties, the Ballad of Billy McFee is friendly to all sea creatures and is appropriate for people of all ages.

The Ballad of Billy McFee is packed to the gills with character development, subplots, puns, and Easter eggs for young and old to find. For example, everyone in the story is on a journey of some kind - whether it be physical or mental, intended or unintended. Some readers will want to get out the magnifying glass and explore the covers of the books which the crab (Emma) reads on her journey of self-improvement. Others will want to follow the antics of the naysayer clams. And some readers (especially the singers) may want to ignore all that and just sing the ballad, glancing at the pictures and turning the pages to keep time with the rhythm. It's all good! There is no wrong way to read or sing the Ballad of Billy McFee. This book is all about celebrating our differences. Through our diversity, we are stronger together!

How will YOU tell Billy's uplifting story? Some people read it like a rhyming story. Some people sing it to the tune of the Wellerman. Some people rap it to a hip hop beat. Some people make up their own tune.

You can read it - you can sing it - whatever floats YOUR boat!