Parents' Guide to Billy Miller Makes a Wish

BILLY MILLER MAKES A WISH starts at the beginning of summer, and the Millers are celebrating Billy's birthday. Billy makes a wish on his birthday candles for "something exciting" to happen. Just afterward, he hears sirens as an ambulance and firetruck speed up the street. Billy and his dad see their elderly neighbor, Mr. Tooley, taken from his home on a stretcher, and Billy gets a sinking feeling that his wish could be the cause of the emergency. However, his dad's very reassuring; he senses that Billy is unsettled and he manages to sooth his fear. The next day, Billy's dad, who's an artist, leaves for several days to attend an adult art camp. While Dad is away, Billy's mom navigates parenting challenges small and medium. Mr. Tooley passes away, and she encourages the kids to make sympathy cards. She enlists the kids' help to clean the basement and then runs out of steam. When she asks Billy to watch his sister, Sal, so she can take a rest, Sal gets into a pickle with magic markers. Later, a small chimney fire starts, and Billy's mom gently herds her kids out of the house so that firefighters can resolve the problem quickly. The whole family is relieved when Dad comes home, and they relish sharing stories about funny and exciting events that occurred when they were apart. In the end, the real excitement comes in the form of a surprise.