A boy, a talking hole in the ground, and an impossible request.One day, Billy found a hole.
It wasn't there yesterday.
But there it was, right in his favorite spot, under his favorite tree.
This hole in the ground is
no ordinary hole in the ground. For it speaks to Billy with a voice that's cold and hard, like ancient stone. At first, the hole in the ground is polite and kind, and tells Billy how clever he is. And, well, Billy just can't resist his new odd friend and their nice words. But when the hole's requests grow more extreme, and Billy can't always meet them--Billy will have to take matters into his own hands before his new friend takes matters into theirs.
From a singular new voice in children's books, Jessica Goecke, comes a new macabre picture book with gorgeous art and a touch of darkness that is also at turns laugh-out-loud funny. Perfect for fans of Jon Klassen's
The Skull or Olive Jeffers's
There's a Ghost In This House!
On sale: August 11, 2026
Age: 4-8 years
Grade: Preschool - 3
Page count: 40 Pages
ISBN: 9780593695234
Reading level: Lexile: 580L | Fountas/Pinnell: O
Jessica Goecke is a writer, illustrator, and graphic designer. She is a 2023 PB Rising Stars mentee and recipient of SCBWI's Don Freeman grant. She lives just outside Seattle with her husband, two kids, and miniature snauzer, Duke.
Billy and the Hole is her debut picture book.
"With its dark humor and clever word play, this ominous story and its unexpected ending will play wonderfully well with fans of Jon Klassen and Jess Hannigan’s work. An unnerving twist on anthropomorphic picture books, this deliciously creepy debut offers a whole fresh take on boundary setting and bad friendships."
— Booklist, starred review"Sepia-toned illustrations lend this tale of toxic friendship an ominous quality, and clever compositions reinforce the witty text’s more absurd moments. Kids will appreciate the book’s humor (who doesn’t love a good belch?) and should find the villainous hole intriguing,...Clever and darkly funny" –
Kirkus Reviews
"Tongue-in-cheek humor marks both the dry tone and the clever illustrations, especially in the skeptical expressions of Cosmo the robot as the hole’s requests become increasingly ridiculous... Stretching the bounds of reality and toeing the line between true menace and irreverent comedy, Billy’s story is at once a horror take on If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and an allegorical warning about friends (or adults) who manipulate you into wanting their friendship and demand without ever giving anything back."
– The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
