100 Bugs! A Counting Book

In this cheerful outing, two sibling “explorers” wake up with the sun to count bugs over the course of a day on their busy farm. As the brother and sister traipse through a meadow and barnyard with a magnifying glass and a butterfly net, Narita introduces insect varieties in upbeat rhymes: “Walkingsticks, walkingsticks,/ hiding all about./ 1 by the old hose,/ 9 by the gold rose./ How many bugs hiding about?/ 10!” The formula is repetitive, but the buzzy commotion of Kaufman’s collage-art spreads will keep readers invested. The end of the book tots up the sets of bugs encountered—“10 from before, plus 10 more. 20 bugs hanging out”—opposite illustrations of all 100 of the bugs appearing in countable rows. A final section offers details about the insect and plant species featured throughout. Ages 5–7. (June)