Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes

This is a book I love.  We have had Ten Little Finger and Ten Little Toes for some time, but as my 2-year-old pulled it out tonight for her bedtime story, I was reminded again at its wonderful simplicity. It is a combined effort by author Mem Fox and illustrator Helen Oxenbury - so you know it will be fantastic.

The story begins:  “There was one little baby who was born far away. And another who was born on the very next day. And both of these babies, as everyone knows, had ten little fingers and ten little toes.”

The book continues to introduce children, born all over the world, some with sneezes and chills and others wrapped in eiderdowns, but all of the children "had ten little fingers and ten little toes.”   This simple refrain points out the common in all of us.  

The illustrations match the simplicity of the text.  Drawn in pencil and watercolor the images are large and uncluttered surrounded by a lot of white space on the page.  Babies are introduced in pairs and as the story progresses the babies continue on to meet the others - each one as huggable as the next.  

We have the full size board book version of this book and love it.  Whether you are looking for a good book to add to your young child collection or a gift for an upcoming baby shower - this is a book you will not be sad to have or give.