Ten sleepy sheep by Renee Treml

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Penguin Random House Australia, 2020. ISBN: 9781760896768.
(Age: 0-3) Highly recommended. In a gentle rhythmic narrative that reads aloud beautifully, the young child is invited to count backwards from ten, looking at the animals that could be found on a farm.
Ten sleepy sheep walk back to the shed.
9 sleepy pups settle in bed.
Right from the beginning when 5 sheep and 5 little lambs can be seen walking back to the shed on an Australian farm, the young child will enjoy counting sleepy puppies, foals,  chicks, calves, ducklings, parrots, lizards, foals, koalas and a joey.
The pastel backgrounds fit beautifully into each of the pictures - a soft brown to show the background of the Australian farm with white sheep walking across it, pale green grass for foals to lie on, a gorgeous blue for baby ducklings and pretty lilac for parrots. Each of the animals or birds is outlined in black and filled in with soft whites and browns, with detailing bringing the fur of the kangaroo and koalas alive.
This is a lovely, gentle board book that will be appreciated at bedtime as the young child is soothed to sleep.
Pat Pledger

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