Ten Little Babies by Rose Impey

Ill. by Nicola Smee. Bloomsbury, 2011. ISBN 978 1 4088 1118 4.
A delightful counting picture book about ten little babies and the mischief they get up to. The story flows in rhyme and could easily be read aloud or made into a song. The babies crawl, float, slide, trot, sail, climb, zoom, hop, fly, and hide. The illustrations are a great support to the text and give clues as to what the babies are getting up to. The individual children are diverse in their appearance giving a multicultural feel to the story. The story takes place outside on the grass in the fresh air. As is often the case, the fresh air results in some sleepy babies by the end of the story. Although number figures are not given on the pages  the reader soon understands that counting backwards is involved. Numbers are however present on the cover of the story and can be shared prior to the story being read. A great picture book to share.
Tracy Glover