Ten Pigs: An Epic Bath Adventure

PreS-Gr 1—This aptly titled tale is a droll, splashy counting book with plenty of laughs. A pig settles in with his rubber duck to enjoy a relaxing bath, but is soon joined by another pig, and then another, until nine more porkers have squeezed into his tiny tub. But they quickly scatter when a wolf appears to take a bath of his own, counting back down to zero. Anderson combines humor with simple, straightforward rhymes to successfully convey basic counting concepts. The crisp, bold illustrations rendered in ink and Photoshop are all done on bright spreads and include colorful block typeface that match the bouncy, comic tone of the text. The animated cartoon characters exude personality and add to the humor, particularly when the pigs are all featured together in the overcrowded tub. Because of its big, vivid illustrations and rhythmic, sprightly rhymes, this story is ideal for sharing with a group as a read-aloud. The ending, in which it is revealed that the wolf is actually a pig in disguise, is a clever and satisfying conclusion to this funny counting adventure.