Billy McFee is a fish with a ship. The problem is his ship is stuck in the muck. He wants to sail his ship and have fun, but he can not pull it free. While singing a shanty and working to pull the ship free, he attracts the attention of other sea creatures. Two clams tell him he will fail. A crab watches from the seaweed, and a shark and a whale swim over to help. Finally, the unlikely team works together to free the ship from the muck.

This whimsical children’s book, written by Ruby Mosher, takes a sea shanty theme and turns it into a lighthearted story about teamwork, diversity, and positive thinking. The song aside, this book has fantastic artwork that will appeal to adults and children. There are many easter eggs hidden in the pages and parallel stories. The clams are hysterical with their naysayer attitude and side discussions that relate back to Billy’s ship problem. Billy learns to ignore them, just like we all have to ignore the naysayers that try and push us off our own paths. All the books that Emma the crab is reading have entertaining titles and give fun extra facts relating to nautical topics and self-esteem. Each member of Billy’s crew brings unique talents to the ship and this memorable story.

This captivating children’s book is designed to be read as a poem, a story, or sung as a sea shanty. 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.

The Ballad of Billy McFee: A sea shanty to read or sing is an entertaining picture book that children and parents will love to read or sing to. Teachers can use this book for all preschool and elementary school-age children to teach different morals or introduce ocean science units.

Pages: 38 | ASIN : B09KSBHV3F