Billy Has a Birthday
Billy Growing Up, Book 1
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Narrated by:
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Lola-Rose Maxwell
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By:
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James Minter
About this listen
Billy Has a Birthday is the first volume in the Billy Growing Up series. The story follows Billy, a young boy who turns 10 on the tenth October - 10, 10, 10 - a once in a lifetime occasion. Billy's excitement at his 'big' birthday perfectly captures that of a child who is bordering on adolescence - each birthday seems so much more important than the last, and the move from single to double figures is one of the greatest of all.
On Billy's birthday, he is over the moon to be given a £20 note by his granddad. No more silly children's toys, he can finally buy what he wants. At the age of 10 this seems like a huge amount of money - more than Billy has ever owned. Things take an unpleasant turn when the local bully hears about Billy's birthday present, and forces him to give it up - or else. Billy, like many other children his age, agrees to the bully's demands.
Billy is devastated to have lost his special birthday present, but he attempts to keep the situation a secret from his mum and granddad. He has nothing to be ashamed of, but has convinced himself that the adults in his life will be cross if they find out what has happened. Like many bullied children he feels he cannot turn to anyone for help. Fortunately, luck is on Billy's side, and his best friend's little sister finds out about the bully and tells Billy's granddad. Together they are able to hatch a plan to get the note back and to ensure the bully gets what's coming to him!
Billy Has a Birthday is a wonderful example of a story that young children can enjoy listening to together with their parents. Using traditional storytelling, it is entertaining while dealing with a serious issue that affect many children as they grow up. Bullying can be a difficult subject for children to talk about, and many feel frightened or embarrassed if they fall victim to bullying. This book acts as the perfect icebreaker for adults and children to begin discussing these issues.
The message in the book is clear - you can't rid the world of bullies but you can do something about how you deal with them.
©2014 James Minter (P)2016 James MinterListeners also enjoyed...
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The Boy Who Could See Demons
- A Novel
- By: Carolyn Jess-Cooke
- Narrated by: Bruce Mann, Carolyn Jess-Cooke
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Dr. Anya Molokova, a child psychiatrist, is called in to work at MacNeice House, an adolescent mental health treatment center. There she is told to observe and assess Alex Connolly, a keenly intelligent, sensitive ten-year-old coping with his mother's latest suicide attempt. Alex is in need of serious counseling: He has been harming himself and others, often during blackouts. At the root of his destructive behavior, Alex claims, is his imaginary "friend" Ruen, a cunning demon who urges Alex to bend to his often violent will.
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HOLY COW!!! Give me more, please!!!
- By Mary on 09-15-13
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Taken
- By: Rosie Lewis
- Narrated by: Madeline Gould
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Experienced foster carer Rosie Lewis takes on the heart-breaking case of Megan, a baby born with neo-natal abstinence syndrome and a cleft palate. Addicted to drugs from birth because of her mother's substance abuse during pregnancy, new-born Megan is taken into Rosie's loving care. Rosie is supposed to help Megan find her new permanent home, but it turns out that Megan has already found her 'forever mummy' in Rosie.
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She is where she belongs!
- By Amazon Customer on 06-01-20
By: Rosie Lewis
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Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat
- By: Lynne Jonell
- Narrated by: Lynne Jonell
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Emmy was a good girl—too good, perhaps. The rat, whose cage sat on the counter next to Emmy’s desk, was not so good. On the other hand, he was the only one in Emmy’s class who would talk to her. The rest of the kids barely knew she existed. Even her teacher didn’t seem to know she was there! Only her nanny, the lovely-but-sinister Miss Barmy, really pays her much attention.
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Amazing!
- By Amanda on 06-08-22
By: Lynne Jonell
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Book 1
- By: J.K. Rowling
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!
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A great reading of the wrong book
- By P on 11-24-15
By: J.K. Rowling
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The Nanny’s Lie
- By: Sue Fortin
- Narrated by: Elisabeth Hopper
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Helen has had to leave everything she's ever known behind: her home, her family, even her own name. Now, returning to the UK as Ellen Newman, she moves to a small coastal village, working as a nanny for Donovan, a criminal psychologist. Attractive, caring and protective, this single father and his sweet daughter are a world away from Ellen's brutal past. But Ellen can't shake the feeling that something's wrong.
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Really sad a woman wrote this
- By Mariel on 06-23-17
By: Sue Fortin
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A Great Deliverance
- Inspector Lynley, Book 1
- By: Elizabeth George
- Narrated by: Donada Peters
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Into Keldale's pastoral web of old houses and older secrets comes Scotland Yard Inspector Thomas Lynley, the eighth earl of Asherton. Along with the redoubtable Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, Lynley has been sent to solve a savage murder that has stunned the peaceful countryside. For fat, unlovely Roberta Teys has been found in her best dress, an ax in her lap, seated in the old stone barn beside her father's headless corpse. Her first and last words were "I did it. And I'm not sorry".
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good debut novel
- By Stevon on 11-11-19
By: Elizabeth George
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The Kneebone Boy
- By: Ellen Potter
- Narrated by: Alex Barrett
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Life in a small town can be pretty boring when everyone avoids you like the plague. But after their father unwittingly sends them to stay with an aunt who’s away on holiday, the Hardscrabble children take off on an adventure that begins in the seedy streets of London and ends in a peculiar sea village where legend has it a monstrous creature lives who is half boy and half animal.
In this wickedly dark, unusual, and compelling novel, Ellen Potter masterfully tells the tale of one deliciously strange family and a secret that changes everything.
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Couldn't Stop Listening
- By nicole on 12-11-15
By: Ellen Potter
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An Irish Village Mystery Bundle, Books 1-3
- By: Carlene O'Connor
- Narrated by: Caroline Lennon
- Length: 29 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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The first three books in the Irish Village Mystery series are included in this edition: Murder in an Irish Village, Murder at an Irish Wedding, and Murder in an Irish Churchyard.
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Your Disdain of Americans is Showing
- By CatMom on 08-08-22
By: Carlene O'Connor
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Lost Dogs and Lonely Hearts
- By: Lucy Dillon
- Narrated by: Jilly Bond
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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An irresistible novel about women, men, and the dogs that own them. Thirty-nine year old Rachel is having a really bad year. After losing her job and breaking up with her boyfriend, Rachel has inherited her late aunt's house, her beloved border collie, and a crowded rescue kennel, despite the fact that she knows almost nothing about dogs. Still, considering her limited options, she gamely takes up the challenge of running the kennel. And as Rachel starts finding new homes for the abandoned strays, it turns out that it might not just be the dogs that need rescuing.
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Lovely story and fantastic narrator
- By Madeline on 03-30-14
By: Lucy Dillon
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Gypsy Boy
- By: Mikey Walsh
- Narrated by: Mikey Walsh
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Mikey's family were Gypsies. They live in a closed community and little is known about their way of life. As he didn't go to school, the caravan became his world. But although Mikey inherited a vibrant culture, his family had a dark hidden history. Eventually Mikey was forced to make a decision – to stay and keep secrets, or escape and find somewhere to belong.
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Beaten up
- By Bel on 06-10-21
By: Mikey Walsh
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The Boy Who Talked to Dogs
- A Memoir
- By: Martin McKenna
- Narrated by: Aaron Abano
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Badly misunderstood by his family and teachers, Martin escaped from endless bullying by running away from home and eventually adopting or being adopted by six street dogs. Camping out in barns, escaping from farmers, and learning to fend for himself by caring for his new friends, Martin discovered a different kind of language, strict laws of behavior, and strange customs that defined the world of dogs.
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*Changes, -EVERYTHING
- By Michelle wilkes on 09-05-20
By: Martin McKenna
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An Orphan in the Snow
- By: Molly Green
- Narrated by: Karen Cass
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Liverpool, 1941. Troubled by a dark family history and the pain of seeing her country torn apart by war, young June Lavender finds new hope when she takes a job at the Dr Barnardo's children's home. There she meets Lizzie McRae, a little girl who is the spitting image of June's sister, who died tragically years before. Against the matron's wishes, the two girls form an unexpected bond as June tries to get the traumatised orphan to speak.
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The title doesn't fit the story
- By mrsmlbj on 11-23-22
By: Molly Green
What listeners say about Billy Has a Birthday
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Midwestbonsai
- 12-27-17
This story is really about bullying
A boy on his 10th birthday surrounded by family, friends, his dog Jacko, and presents! What could be better? Nothing! So it's a total bummer when the neighborhood bully, Eddie, takes Billy's special gift of $20 that he just received from his grandad. This story is really about bullying and not so much about birthday parties or turning 10 years old.
The story starts off light and fun with the birthday party and his grandad playing the part of a magician named The Great Magisco! Max, the sister of Billy's best friend Ant, plays Magisco's assistant. All the kids enjoy the magic show and afterward, Billy and Ant go for a bike ride. That's when Eddie and his buddies make an appearance. Eddie uses the pretext of not having been invited to bully the money out of Billy.
I really like that things get a little complicated here as that's how real life often is. Billy is embarrassed and not sure if his mom and grandad will be angry with him. Luckily someone else knows about this and comes up with a plan to trick Eddie out of his ill-gotten gains. There was none of this 'Stand tall and stand up to that bully!' stuff that always sounds so good in fiction but can well end up with blood and broken bones in real life.
The ending had a nice chat between Billy and his grandad and mom where the importance of involving those who can help is brought up. Billy goes on to have a great birthday while Eddie and his parents have a chat with authorities. After the tale is over, there's a little bit about why the author chose to shape the story the way he did. I think this is a good conversation starter for parents who want to chat with their kids about bullying.
The Narration: Lola-Rose Maxwell is very pleasant to listen to. Since this story is told in the 3rd person, it worked just fine having a female narrator for a male-lead story. She kept kids and adults distinct but not all character voices had their own flair. For instance, I was expecting grandad to sound old but he didn't particularly. I also expected Max to sound more like a little girl kid but she sounded like a tween or teen. Maxwell did a great job of being part of the story, imbuing each character with emotion. Her pacing was spot on. There were no technical issues with the recording.
Audiobook was provided for review by the author.
Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog.
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- Mary Karowski
- 06-12-16
One of the best messages for kids today
The message here is a great one. With all the bullying issues that even my own kids have had to deal with the message here I just spit on. My youngest son really enjoyed it. The narrator did a great job. Optimum listening speed 1.25x. Will look for the rest of the series as it comes out. I received this audiobook from the author narrator or publisher for free via audiobookboom in exchange for an unbiased review.
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