Leaf Thief: 1, 2, 3, Can You Count Along?

by Alice Hemming, Nicola Slater (Illustrator)

Squirrel and Bird are following some mysterious noises―young readers can guess what they'll find, and lift the flap to count how many. Follow them around their sunny woodland and lift the paper flaps to discover a woodpecker, butterflies, mice, flowers, and of course Squirrel's favorite―leaves! Following up on the fabulous NYT Bestseller success of the Leaf Thief books, this is a fun lift-the-flap exploration of numbers with a sense of humor perfect for the youngest readers!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

10 pages, Board Book

Published February 3, 2026

About the author

Alice Hemming is the author of over fifty books for children, including the bestselling Dark Unicorns series (Scholastic), and picture book, The Leaf Thief with illustrator Nicola Slater (Scholastic 2020), which has sold across the world and been translated into nineteen languages. Alice lives in Hertfordshire, UK with her husband and two children, and works in a writing shed at the top of her garden.

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

First sentence: Tap, tap, tap! "What's the strange sound coming from that tree, Bird?" "Maybe it's one of our friends, Squirrel. Let's take a look..."

Premise/plot: Count along with Squirrel.

My thoughts: I am not familiar--or if I am I've completely forgotten--with the "Leaf Thief" series of books. I'm going to go out on a limb (pun intended) that they may be better than this one. Squirrel hears plenty of things and does some counting--one to five.

Counting books aren't particularly ever going to be full of thrills. This one was fine.

[TJE · Rating 3 out of 5]

loved the flaps, decent book but not great