One to Ten…and Back Again was written by Betty Ann Schwartz. The illustration copyrights belong to Susie Shakir. However, the image manipulation and design is by Christopher Franceschelli. No awards were issued. This children’s picture book is intended to be read by the nursery age group. I rated this book as a five.
One to Ten…and Back Again is an educational picturebook that helps children learn how to count one to ten forward as well as backwards. The concept revolves around insects and small backyard critters that a toddler can easily identify.
The book is shaped in a square with a handle cut-out to promote a child to carry the book. The front cover displays the wording “One to Ten” in large black print on a white background. The wording of “…and Back Again” is small white print on a black background along with a bee flying towards a smiley face flower. In addition, the cover indicates that the book has “an amazing pull-the-ribbon” feature in red lettering highlighted yellow. The ribbons are inserted into each page and pops up when the pages are turned. Each number in the text is associated to how many ribbons appear. The ribbons are smooth and shiny. Each ribbon has the number of insects or small critters associated to the text. For example, the number 3 page ribbons have 1 bee, 2 butterflies, and 3 grasshoppers. On the vecto, the full bleed illustrations and text are upside down with a black background. On the recto, the full bleed illustrations and text are in the position for the reader in a white background. The number and the number word are both presented in a very large font. The rest of the text remains large, but smaller than the number font. The illustrations are bright, cheerful, and simple. The insects and small critters are drawn in unrealistic colors. The last double spread page displays all of the insects and small critters in their respective number groups along with directions to turn the book around to count backwards.
Overall, One to Ten…and Back Again is an excellent counting picturebook for a toddler. The handle allows a child to carry it with them. The illustrations are attractive and can be easily identified. The ribbon pull provides a fun pop-up approach to encourage counting. This early stage mathematics book can be used in a daycare or preschool setting to encourage counting one to ten forward as well as backwards.