Billy Hazelnuts and the Crazy Bird — Tony Millionaire

In Billy Hazelnuts and the Crazy Bird, we rejoin Billy Hazelnuts' titular homunculus hero, girl scientist Becky, and Becky's mom, as things have settled back down - with Billy using his super-strength to help around the old house. Everything would be just perfect - if it weren't for his jumpy relationship with the household cat! One day, Billy hears screeching in the yard: the cat is being attacked by a large owl. Yelling, "I hate that cat, but it's OUR CAT!" Billy chases away the owl, only to discover an egg left behind. When it hatches, it's up to Billy to reunite the baby owl with its mother, and the two must venture into the deep, deep woods to do so! The resulting yarn is a crazy potion of all-ages fun, humor, thrills and chills such as only Tony Millionaire is capable of, all drawn in a pen-and-ink style reminiscent of the very best of early-last-century children's book illustration. (Even the story has echoes of Millionaire's inspirations, such as Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan.) Though much of contemporary children's literature has a sanitized feel, Millionaire's Billy Hazelnuts series harkens back to the dark uncanniness of German folk and fairy tales. In Billy Hazelnuts and the Crazy Bird, both children and adults will find much to enjoy!