Bored

By: Felicita Sala

Published by Holiday House, Incorporated, 2026-01-06

Utter boredom leads one imaginative girl to inspiration in this clever story from much-loved creator Felicita Sala.

Rita is bored. So, so, so bored.

She's tried stretching her body across her bedroom, side-eyeing herself in the mirror, stomping her feet and swinging her arms. Time drags on, and there she remains: catatonic with boredom.

In her tragic and weakened state, her mind drifts to the beginning of a daydream. What if all the bored people in the world gathered together and got onto a bus? What if the boredom filled them up like balloons, with tiny heads and arms sticking out? What if they floated into the sky, bobbing along until they each spied something exciting enough to make them toot the boredom out?

By the time Rita's mother calls her for dinner, she's very, very busy.

Anyone who's ever been bored will find catharsis in Rita's plight. As all creative people eventually learn, boredom can be the best launchpad to great ideas. Felicita Sala's expressive, inviting illustrations and sly storytelling are a guaranteed antidote to the doldrums.

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection