View source for Poppy Cat's Counting Adventure by Lara Jones

{{infobox
|title=Poppy Cat's Counting Adventure
|author=Lara Jones
|reviewer=Zoe Page
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=4.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-0230754041
|pages=10
|publisher=Campbell Books
|date=September 2013
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>023075404X</amazonuk>
|amazonus=<amazonus>023075404X</amazonus>
|website=
|video=
|summary=The tabby off the telly is teaching counting in this well made, colourful and sturdy book that the little people in your life will love.
}}
Just how much can you pack in one short book?  That’s the question you’ll be asking when you pick up ''Poppy Cat’s Counting Adventure''. How about: rhyme (check), flaps to lift (check), holes to peep through (check), bright colours, happy characters and a fun, educational aspect (check, check, check). This book really has it all.

This is a count to 10 book for little ones with indelicate hands – it’s a sturdy, large board book, and the interactive bits (the holes and the flaps) are robustly made, and reinforced, to withstand quite of lot of rough treatment. Each page has a number on it, and the item to find, 2 birds, 3 shells and so on, though you might have to look across the double page spread to find them all. You might even have to lift a flap or two, too. In addition to ticking off the numbers, there’s a story to enjoy. Poppy Cat et al are dreaming about all the adventures they could have, a wonderful way to incorporate the excitement of a beach AND a park AND a jungle in a few short pages. 

The rhythm of the rhyme in this one isn’t as obvious as in some books, so you almost have to read it yourself first to get the beat, which changes from page to page. If you can get ''again'' to rhyme with ''aeroplane'', and ''far'' to sound similar enough to ''stars'', it does work though. And anyway, they’re going to be so engrossed in tracking down the items, lifting all the flaps and sticking chubby fingers through the holes, the rhyme actually ends up being one of the less important bits.

The colours in this book are dazzling: it definitely looks professionally done rather than a home made effort. The illustrations are fun and happy and bright, and I loved the shiny sparkle on the last 2 pages. 

''Poppy Cat’s Counting Adventure'' is a TV tie in that also works as a stand-alone counting book for children who’ve not come across the tabby on their telly screens as yet. It’s incredibly interactive and not too easy and boring – you still have to put the effort in, as sometimes the caterpillars and beetles birds are a bit naughty and hide from you.

Recommended.

Thanks go to the publishers for sending us this one.

Those who have already grasped 1 to 10 and want more, will certainly enjoy [[Counting Sheep: A Bedtime Adventure! by Kathryn Cave and Chris Riddell]] or how about [[The Selfish Crocodile Counting Book by Faustin Charles and Michael Terry]]?

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