Review: 10 Busy Brownies -- an adorable book for young kids learning to count !!!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 17, 2014
Ten Busy Brownies by Talia Haven is a lovely book for young kids learning to count and it has the charming flavor of an old folktale indeed! I should add that the illustrations by Sytiva Sheehan are very well done, creative and most imaginative, too! Grownups can happily bond with toddlers and young kids as they read this book together and the vocabularies of small children will be enhanced as they read this book, discover new words and learn how to count from one to ten. This book focuses on counting from one to ten with characters called brownies—similar to hobgoblins and well-meaning creatures that live in homes and primarily help out with chores at night when children have neglected those everyday jobs. I also like that the author, Talia Haven, uses rhyme to write her story for children—rhyme is one of my very favorite ways to write for small kids!The book begins with “one busy brownie watches children sleep/Guarding dreams of fence leaping sheep.” The reader then discovers two busy brownies “(picking) up clothes and toys/Flung about by messy girls and boys.” Then Talia goes on with each little vignette of helpful brownies increasing by one until there are ten busy brownies “(stacking) up pans to scrub/One brownie falls in the tub.”There’s a little bit more to the story than just this but I’ll stop here to avoid spoiling it all for you! Suffice it to say that young children learning to count will be captivated by this fine children’s book that clearly shows just how much love and affection the author and illustrator have for young kids!Please, Talia and Sytiva, keep these wonderful and very special children’s books coming—I only wish I had such delightful books when I was a young kid learning to count!