• Age: 3 to 7
• Grade: p to 3

Bill has a terrible, unbearable, lousy beak-ache. He also happens to be a bowerbird: a type of bird that collects scraps to create elaborate color-sorted nests. So Bill turns to his friends the zebra, frog, yak, and others for objects that might help alleviate his ache. Nothing works. But as it turns out, the pain is from a new tooth! The ache goes away on its own.

This fun, wacky story is told in playful cadence with rhyme and refrain. Artwork is deliberately childlike, stylized in bold, energetic colors just like a bowerbird’s eccentric nest design. A riot to read, this story also offers some wisdom on getting through tough times: patience, and a little help from your friends.

TYLER CLARK BURKE is a writer, illustrator, designer, and freelance brainstormer. She co-founded the internationally acclaimed record label Three Gut Records (with The Constantines, Jim Guthrie, and Oneida), then sold her part to make art. Tyler has worked as a creative director and art director, has won numerous awards for her cover designs, and her art has been shown and collected internationally. Bill Bowerbird and the Unbearable Beak-Ache is Tyler’s first picture book. She lives in Toronto, Ontario with her husband and two children.

Tyler Burke's profile page

"Quirky...memorable."

Resource Links

"A truly entertaining read from cover to cover...offers some practical wisdom on getting through tough times with patience and a little help from your friends...enthusiastically recommended."

The Midwest Book Review

"...rich with colours--the confetti-striped zebras are an especial treat..."

Kirkus Reveiws

"A fun take on a toothache and the value of teamwork."

CanLit for Little Canadians

"Wickety-tickety-woo-hoo-hoo. Bill the Bowerbird uses energetic onomatopoeia when he turns to his oddball animal friends for help with a sore tooth. For readers who like: a zany cast of characters."

The National Post

"Jubilant...the sense of a community offered to Bill provides a comfort that lasts long after the beak-ache goes away."

The Globe and Mail

"In this vivid and colourful picture book from Canadian artist Tyler Clark Burke, Bill Bowerbird wakes up one morning with an unspeakable beak-ache. So he heads out in search of some help from his friends: the owl, zebra, frog, yak, and walrus. It’s a fresh and fun story that will brighten up bedtime in your house night after night after night."

Movie Entertainment Magazine

"A fun take on a toothache and the value of teamwork."

CanLit for Little Canadians