Counting Kisses

by Karen Katz

How many kisses does a tired baby need before they say goodnight? Find out in this adorable kiss-and-count concept book from Karen Katz!

Count and kiss along with this lift-the-flap bedtime book, from children’s book legend, Karen Katz!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Counting, Storytime, Family, Love, Number

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2011

About the author

Karen Katz has written and illustrated many books for children, including The Colors of Us, Can You Say Peace, My First Ramadan, Counting Kisses and Where is Baby's Belly Button. Long inspired by folk art from around the world, she was inspired to write her first book, Over the Moon, when she and her husband adopted their daughter from Guatemala, and she wanted to tell the story of welcoming Lena into their lives. Katz loves to paint and experiment with texture, color, collage and pattern. Besides an author and illustrator, she has been a costume designer, quilt maker, fabric artist and graphic designer. Katz and her family divide their time between New York City and Saugerties, New York.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/karenkatz

Reviews

[Scratch · Rating 3 out of 5]

You damn well better kiss along while you read, because otherwise this book will bore your child.

[Amanda Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a great way to introduce numerical value numbers as well as number words. This book allows you to participate in reading with your child. You can act out the action on the pages and count while you are doing it. It is a great interactive book. I chose this book because I feel like when people don't know how to read to their child this book is an icebreaker to that. This book shows you what to do and how to do it all the while making reading fun.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet and cozy little story about all the kisses it takes before baby falls asleep--from ten little kisses on ten little toes to two kisses on each eye. It's nice as we see Mom, Dad, Grandma and Big Sis/Bro all showering the baby with love.

[Jeniece Goellner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any excuse to give kisses to my little girl is welcomed. Plus it is a really good counting book. Some of the descriptive adjectives of the places to kiss your child were a bit much for me.

[Grant Hohlbein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great excuse to annoy Lucy very much.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A neat counting book, counting from 10 to 1. Little baby gets kisses from her loved ones.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favorite, but better than others. There's the counting aspect and the body parts, too. It has a bedtime air in it, but I think it could work in baby storytime.

[Dinah Moore · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn’t work for me.

[Deserae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet book to read with students at the facility students can think about the wonderful exeperiences they have at home with their love ones kissing them goodnight and showing them that they love them and will see them in the morning. It is also a good book to read with students learning numbers from 10to1.

[Miya (severe pain struggles, slower at the moment) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book a million times. The littles can't get enough of the silly and sweet words and ridiculously adorable illustrations. Great way to learn numbers and share big smiles with the family.

[Mlpmom (Book Reviewer) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My children loved reading this sweet story before bedtime when they were little.

[Felicia Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

like reading to baby girl

[Lagobond · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a type of meditation practice that teaches you to methodically relax your entire body (and mind) by tightening, and then relaxing, one muscle group at a time. You can start with your forehead and work your way down to your toes, or vice versa. This book reminds me of that: baby gets ten kisses on her toes and then we count down to that last, single kiss "on your sleepy, dreamy head." A lovely progression that starts with tickly, silly fun (because how could ten toe kisses not be tickly, silly fun?!), and ends with peaceful sleepy relaxation. Good for babies' and toddlers' bedtime routines.

Since I'm currently looking for bedtime stories for a friend's little boy, I'm a little disappointed that this sweet book is so obviously geared towards girls. Of course girls have had to read guys' books since the dawn of time, so I personally wouldn't mind this at all. It's not like little boys will be hurt by seeing some pink every now and then. But I can't honestly envision the little guy's dad reading him this concoction of pink hearts and hair ribbons. Which reminds me of how far we still have to go in how we treat little girls and boys.

[Morgan Sauerwein · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Counting Kisses" by Karen Katz is a sweet picture book that helps young kids learn to count. The story shows a mom putting her baby to bed, counting down from 10 to 1 as she gives kisses. This book is great for teaching early math because it shows numbers in different ways - as digits, words, and pictures. It also uses a familiar bedtime routine that kids can relate to, and children can join in by counting along and pointing to their own body parts. Teachers can use this book in many fun ways, such as reading it out loud and having kids count along, playing counting games with body parts, or having kids make up their own counting stories. "Counting Kisses" is a good start for teaching numbers to young children, making learning math fun and connecting it to everyday life.

[CosterKristina24 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This board book presents learning numbers in a very colorful and sweet way. The main character in the story is a baby girl with brown pigtails and a pink onesie on. Throughout the book it presents each letter in order and every time the baby receives a kiss from her loved ones. This story teaches about family relationships, colors, objects, and numbers for infants and toddlers. One reason I did not like this book because it seemed very repetitive and lacked having a plot or a creative story.

[Shelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 9 month old baby girl LOVED this book! The story allows for a lot of interaction with your baby or toddler! I kissed her toes and counted each kiss, then I did this for her feet, knees, belly button, hands and the other body parts in the book. My baby was giggling while I kissed her toes, feet, and belly button. It was such a cute and precious moment!

I’ve decided I like this one better than Where’s Baby’s Belly Button?

[Faith Key · Rating 4 out of 5]

Text to Teaching:
This book can be used to teach math and literature. It can teach children how to count. It counts backwards from 10-1. This book also uses a lot of adjectives such as: tired, little, tiny, squishy, chubby, loud, and pretty. It can also be used to teach verbs and nouns. This book spells out the number and shows the actual number so the child can learn how to spell numbers.

[Hannah Lewczynski · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork was so simple and cute! I love how interactive this book is! This would be a perfect interactive read aloud with your own child... that you can kiss. Love that the book uses kisses and numbers to count down from ten until the fussy baby falls asleep! Would recommend to children under 5 who love to cuddle up to their mommies!

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great for a babytime, with very little ones. Have parents give little kisses to their infant/young one as you read the descriptions in the book. Probably won't translate over to toddler or preschool storytimes very well, though.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Counting Kisses by Karen Katz is an adorable book that was given to my baby girl before she was born. It is a great counting book for babies, and the illustrations are bright and colorful. We read to our children before bed, and Counting Kisses is a wonderful way to calm down the baby before bed.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is super cute, but my little guy wasn't into it. I think it would work better for kiddos who are not yet mobile--I had a hard time wrestling him around to kiss the designated spots in the book. :)

[Eva_Amaré · Rating 3 out of 5]

We're kind of obsessed with randomly yelling out body parts at the moment. Neck in particular is a favourite, so this was fun to read and point to our different body parts while mama counted and gave us kisses. Still not really on board with numbers so not sure what the fuss is all about.

[Marina Maynard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love how much shade the author throws the grandma. Her kisses are loud and warm - typical. Karen really understands knees - they are both chubby and yummy. I'm going to have to suggest some different adjectives for these animal kisses though. A cat's kiss has never and will never be fuzzy.

[Lauren Mowrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very sweet and would be a good book to read when kids are missing parents at school. This book also has lots of numbers and I like that it would make it easy to practice counting while reading it.

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this author/illustrator. This book is cute because it’s all about kisses before bed! And it’ll help with counting backwards. The cover makes it seem like it’s a mother and baby book, but it’s not.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book that one could add interaction to with a read-a-loud (kissing baby's feet, belly, etc.). Concept book for counting.

[Keshia Burchette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a sweet bedtime story for little ones.

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very sweet counting book. babies will love the kisses, even if they can't count them.

[A Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the concept of this book. I also really enjoy the hearts that correspond with the number of kisses; that is a nice visual aid. I only wish this book had more diversity.

[Kara Pirko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the sweet nature behind this book. It is perfect for an interactive read with your child. You are able to count aloud and kiss the child following the book.