Burglar Bill

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There is something of a straight-faced-but-purposely-ridiculous whimsy in a lot of British children's books, and this one really takes it to extremes. The illustrations really make this a great book, and the story is heartwarming and fun at the same time. It's such an oddball story as Burglar Bill lives upto his name and pinches anything he fancies, including a box with a big surprise. I simply love this book which is about a burglar named Bill whos life is surrounded by stolen items from the tea he drinks to the bed he sleeps on!

Burglar Bill is the delightful story of a thief who lives off other people's fortunes, until two major events change his life forever.

We read it last night, and the kid loved it so much that he insisted we read it again first thing this morning. I don't remember Burglar Bill being a Londoner when I read it as a kid, but I found myself doing a dodgy Ray Winstone impersonation here. Burglar Bill has to find ways of entertaining and looking after the baby - feeding him beans, playing the piano to him, trying to change his nappy, teaching him to talk. The Ahlberg's delightful story has it all: adventure; romance; felonies galore; remorse; restitution and a happy ending.

Allan Ahlberg is one of the UK's most acclaimed and successful authors of children's books - including the best-selling Jolly Postman series.And of course to give up their burgling ways - clearly a story for children has to have a moral ending! Being my school's librarian, I now get to sort through books we get and idly skim through them when I've got a moment.

though making the text more reader friendly, and changing the lay-out of some of the pages would be a start). The real adventure begins when he burgles a big brown box that was left on a doorstep, takes it home, and realises there's a baby inside it. He confronts the burglar, who he discovers is Burglar Betty, and they talk to one another to find they have much in common.I remembered loving this book as a child so wanted to see if it lived up to my memory of it, and it did. Bill and Betty exchange pleasantries and after a short while Bill describes his unusual find the other evening. Well, I bought the kindle version and I think the publisher could have done more to adapt this for the kindle. My 8 year old still insists I read it to him at least once a month and I love the fact that if my 19 year old is around when we are reading, he will linger long enough to hear the end.

After all, that poem - perhaps meant to mock sentimental stories like Frances Hodgson's Burnett's Editha's Burglar - also dealt with a burglar and his transformative encounter with an innocent child. If used to support learning at home, Burglar Bill can help first readers achieve the targets for Key Stage One English: Reading. She just left him on the door step while she was busy burgling and the next thing she knew, he'd gone. Anyway, gosh, Burglar Bill is totally defined by his whole burglar-ness, as well as his Englishness, as every night he has 'stolen fish and chips and a cup of stolen tea for supper'. The very stereotypical type - with a black-and-white striped top, a bag of loot over his back, and a mask over his eyes.The plot becomes very predictable - as Burglar Bill and Burglar Betty talk, they both establish that the other is single, and so they decide to get married. We can also bring this story in PSHE classes to help the children understand how our own actions may affect other peoples’ feelings. It’s been a staple in my house now for almost twenty years and even when my kids have flown the nest I’ll read it.