Ten Friendly Frogs by Sally Hobson

Ten Friendly Frogs by Sally Hobson
Buy Ten Friendly Frogs by Sally Hobson at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Sue Magee
Summary: A counting book with added extras - plastic frogs on every page and a button to (quietly) produce the sound of a frog. Bright colours and verse will attract any child's attention. Recommended.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 24	Date: April 2008
Publisher: Scholastic
ISBN: 978-1407104836
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Ten friendly frogs
Sitting in a line
One leapt off his lilypad
And that left…

Well, you know how it goes. In my youth we sang about ten green bottles despite the fact that none of us had ever seen green bottles and such songs, such books are, er, ten a penny. It takes something a bit special to lift a counting book out of the ordinary and there are a few things about this book which do just that.

The most important point is that it's a solidly constructed board book that's going to withstand a lot of rough handling. There are small parts which could be removed (but not easily) so the book is not suitable for children under thirty six months but the holes in the pages are going to invite a lot of poking and pulling. The pages aren't indestructible, but they'll withstand quite a lot of wear without much tear.

There are ten plastic frogs in the book. As each page is turned one is left behind until only one remains. Each frog is slightly different in size to accommodate the thickness of the pages, but they're all soft and tactile. It's difficult for an adult to resist stroking and poking them and virtually impossible for a child, but once again the construction is robust.

I did wonder if I was going to find the Ribbit! Ribbit! button annoying. It's a circular button of just the right size for a young child, which, when pushed produces a sound rather like a frog. It's very quiet though and a child is going to have to listen very carefully to hear it.

There's little in the way of subtlety in the colours in the book but they're going to attract and hold the attention of a young child. Every page has other animals as well as the frogs – I'm looking at a page at the moment where there are mice, a snail, a caterpillar and a ladybird. This book isn't just about counting – there's a story to be made out of every page.

The text is simple and straightforward, sparse even, with four lines of rhyme to each double-page spread. It won't be long before the young reader will be reciting the words along with you. Just occasionally the rhymes are slightly uncomfortable but that's a very minor point in an otherwise excellent book.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.

Another counting book which we can recommend is The Selfish Crocodile Counting Book by Faustin Charles and Michael Terry.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Ten Friendly Frogs by Sally Hobson at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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