An appealingly illustrated story about facing up to, and overcoming, fears. Francis has a secret, even from his best friend Ben: he's a scaredy-cat. Francis is afraid of the dark, but most of all, he's scared of the whispery hissy monster he hears out on the big tree in the garden on stormy nights. One night, Ben is late coming home, and Francis worries that the monster has captured him. Can Francis face his fear and go out into the dark, windy night to rescue his friend? Ed Boxall tells a comforting tale about friendship, and the discovery that love can overcome fear.

 

There are 32 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2003 by Walker Books Ltd .

Ed Boxall is an illustrator, writer and performer. He loves illustrating poetry because he loves to read the poems. Ed lives in Hastings, East Sussex and has a small grey dog called Dixie who thinks she's a human.