‘Little Billy’ has fun, makes friends in new children’s book

There’s just something about inquisitive Little Billy, and the animals he encounters during a stroll through the woods, that has never let go of Barry Farber.

Farber, a New York author who’s penned 14 business and inspirational books, in over 30 languages, created the story of The Adventures of Little Billy: In Search of the Magic Tree as a gift for his young children. “My kids always loved when I would make up stories and do voices,” he explained.

He based the tale on his own childhood summer camp adventures.

Barry Farber originally wrote the book for his own children.

Farber always thought it would make a good book. “And when my daughter was 10 she said ‘Hey dad, I thought you said to finish everything you start.’” Originally, the pages appeared in crayon color-able black and white. A subsequent printing included all-color illustrations.

Freshly published in its first-ever hardcover edition, from St. Petersburg Press, The Adventures of Little Billy is a vibrant, imaginative story that imparts several gentle life lessons along the way.

Billy encounters a series of animals, each with a unique problem to solve. “If you think attitude is important, or that courage, determination, empathy, all these things aren’t important, you gotta be out of your mind,” Farber laughed, “because they were big 500 years ago, and they’ll be big 500 years from now.”

He took additional inspiration from Tamerlaine Animal Sanctuary and Preserve, a 336-acre rescue facility in  Montague Township, New Jersey. Little Billy, in fact, is now the official ambassador for Tamerlaine’s education program.

Farber, who’s also a radio and TV host, agent and marketing consultant, believes that The Adventures of Little Billy might just be his crowning achievement.

“It was the hardest thing to write,” he admitted. “A column or a book, that’s one thing, but when you have to put a children’s book together in 24 pages, with something that has meaning, everything to be precise.”

He said he was very careful about it, and sought critiques from teachers and actual schoolchildren. And a hardback edition was always his ultimate goal.

Barry Farber and Little Billy have another thing in common: “There’s a saying I have: By the mile it’s a trial, by the yard it’s hard, but by the inch it’s a cinch.”

The Adventures of Little Billy: In Search of the Magic Tree is available from St. Petersburg Press.