Buddy is so Annoying

by Wenzheng Fu
Age Range: Under_5

Buddy is So Annoying is a charming, quirky tale about friendship. The young boy narrator finds his friend Buddy, (an anthropomorphised boar), intensely annoying; they’ve known each other since the first day at kindergarten. Buddy is annoying when he can’t keep up and when he’s faster; annoying when he talks and when he doesn’t. In fact, there are lots of annoying things about Buddy. But when he goes away on holiday, his friend soon realises that however annoying he is, he still wouldn’t be without him.

Chinese author and illustration Wenzheng Fu’s story has a simple and straightforward text, translated by Adam Lanphier, but it’s the brash expressive gouache paintings, with their unusual palette of blue, brown and orange, that provide the vibrant colour and comical expressions that carry this humorous and appealing story about the importance of friendship.