Billy and the Birdfrogs

With one of the most authentic voices in young adult literature, B. B. Wurge makes an outstanding debut in this sly tale of real estate, paleontology, and the ties that bond even the most unusual of families. Wurge lives in a very narrow 4-story building with his eccentric Grandma, an endearing, energetic, and slightly crusty woman who fears for their safety: B. B.'s mother (Grannie's daughter) was killed several years earlier while on a dinosaur dig thousands of feet beneath the basement; a dig that had already revealed a wooly mammoth and other promising fossils. Grannie was a little "different" anyway--how else to explain one who determines when her spaghetti sauce is done by dunking tennis balls in it. An Auntie Mame-like character such as Grannie (and, one imagines, her daughter) is bound to make a few enemies, and some wickedly drawn crooked speculators (a timely book!) squash Grannie with three steam rollers, seize her house, and surrender the frightened B.B. to a family that barely wants or understands the boy they insist on calling "Bobby." That's the plot, and it's wonderfully twisted, but not so convoluted that one can't follow it. What makes this book a gem is B.B.'s narration. Most adult writers can probably do a pretty good impersonation of a pre-adolescent's voice. The problem is the temptation to go too cute, precious, precocious even, and make every bit of the narration shine. Well, most boys aren't budding Oscar Wildes, and an author who goes too cute risks subverting the story by drawing too much attention to the writing. What I especially liked was the B.B's natural "voice." Sure, B.B. has some insightful, funny observations, but 'Birdfrogs' reminds me more of the straightforward, absorbing narration of Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island." There's the same sort of grounded text here, even in the midst of all the absurdity and apparent tragedy. There's real excitement in B.B.'s escape from his forced-adoptive situation back to his house--and down through the tunnel undre the basement. With equal doses of perseverence, hard work, and some playground physics, B.B. repeats his mother's big dig, discovering that Grannie is not only sane, but alive! In a slightly too-rapid conclusion, B.B.'s mother also appears; she's been so busy studying the so-called "birdfrogs" in the basement (actually a type of gorilla) that she simply didn't notice her years-long absence from her mother and only son for several years. It's way too implausible--an easy way out. Fortunately, the plot doesn't hinge on this explanation. Aside from this small flaw, I enthusiastically enjoyed every page. While other books have explored the Dickensonian "dark side" of childhood ('Harry Potter,' 'Unfortunate Events,''Lemony Snicket'), "Billy and the Bullfrogs" isn't as demanding on the younger reader (i.e., almost any elementary school age kid), and, implausible or not, concludes happily for the Wurge family (although not for the two truly evil-doer

Written by Billy some time after the adventure he recounts, this is a thrilling story about a boy looking for answers - about his crazy-haired grandma, his sandwich-loving mother and some curious footprints in the basement of his brownstone. Even more wonderful than the suspenseful narrative, however, was the peculiar perspective Billy afforded as a narrator. Having spent much of his life shut inside his apartment, Billy doesn't look at things like other kids do and his way of navigating through the world is at once absurd and technical. Billy doesn't seem to realize that most people don't put tennis balls in their pasta sauce or play with canned goods for exercise. When tragedy strikes and a host of Dickensian characters invade his world with their pointy fingers and ear picking habits, Billy is forced to confront his own life as if from the outside and these moments of doubt are among the most compelling moments in the book. Armed with a potato peeler and a plastic duck, Billy sets out to explore the recesses of his basement and prove - to the outside world as well as himself - the dangers around which he has shaped his life.

Billy and the Birdfrogs is definitely not just a kids' book. It's one of those crossovers for kids and adults, like Harry Potter (but more on that comparison below). The story is about nine-year-old Billy whose last name we never find out. He lives with his grandmother in a townhouse in Manhattan. At the beginning of the story he doesn't know what happened to his mother or father. One day he sees his grandmother sealing up the basement door and he asks her why nobody is allowed to go down into the basement. She begins to tell him a story. There is a hole in the basement floor, a hole that leads nobody-knows-where. And strange animals, "birdfrogs" the grandmother calls them, are coming out of the hole. The story gets strange and scary, and sets the stage for the adventures to come. I won't give away the plot, but Billy goes on both an action adventure and a kind of inner personal journey. He finds out about his mother and father, he has to overcome villains that try to take him away from his grandmother, and he relies on his own family loyalty and personal grit to save the day. There is no question the best part of this book is the grandmother, and Billy's relationship to her. That part of the book is so strong that it seems to me like the makings of a classic here. Personally I loved the book. I read it in one sitting and laughed all the way through it. Nonetheless, the beginning reminded me too much of The Witches by Roald Dahl. Grandmother tells a long story to a little boy, who doesn't entirely believe her. This author is obviously a Dahl fan. That said, I do think Billy is an original book. It has a lot of creative, new elements. In fact, it was refreshing to read a new book that really had its own voice and created its own kind of comedy. This book may not appeal to all people. It has a sort of over-the-top, unexpected imagination. If you like Monte Python, or The Hitchhiker's Guide, or Roald Dahl, then you'll probably love this book as much as I did. But I can see a lot of people scratching their heads and saying, "Huh? Where did THAT come from?" I suspect that children will connect well to the book. Comparison to Roald Dahl: I am a fan of Dahl. Some of my favorite books are classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, and so on. Like the Dahl books, Birdfrogs used exaggeration, great villains, and a large dose of the grotesque. People getting horribly squashed and orphaned, that sort of thing. But also Billy had an undercurrent that I don't see as much in Dahl. There's almost a kind of uplifting subtext. The heart of the book is about family and loyalty and hope. There's a lot of forgiveness in the book. It isn't overdone or preachy; but there it is. Comparison to Lemony Snicket: since the publishers mention the comparison, I'll comment. To me there isn't much comparison. I was never in love with the Snicket books. They are entertaining. This one is better. Comparison to Harry Potter: Actu

This book basically exploded at me from the page. I loved it from the beginning. It was hilarious and I would recommend it for kids and adults. In fact, I bought extra copies as birthday presents for friends. Wurge has one wild imagination. I really like Roald Dahl and am a Harry Potter fan, and Wurge's book appealed to me in some of the same ways -- suspenseful plot, a main character I felt connected to, and a great sense of humor. I just really enjoyed it and was sorry when it ended. Long live Wurge!

I picked this up out of curiosity, because the author is supposedly an orangutan, by which one must assume the book shows a good sense of humor. It's hilarious. A very engaging read, quite clever, with humor for both the 8-year-old and the adult. Even the sophisticated adult will have to hang on to her chair so as not to fall out laughing in a few spots in this story. Billy's grandma is outrageously lovable, and the entire, outlandish, impossible story is somehow completely believable. I won't give away the "birdfrogs," or the wonderful ending, except to say it's worth the read to find out. I don't know where this guy gets his ideas, but they're refreshingly original in an age when so much children's literature uses the same old plots and themes. I only wish the editors had been more careful...there's a stupid typo that's unfortunately hard to miss. Then again, one wonders if it was intentional.