123 Dream

In a companion to ABC Dream, published earlier this year, Krans counts to 20 using meticulously detailed ink and watercolor drawings of wild animals and objects, including four foxes, nine narwhals, 14 feathers, and 17 salamanders. Each numeral appears in bold black print, but the pages are otherwise wordless, creating a subtle guessing game involving what is meant to be counted (four rabbits appear for the number eight—it’s their ears that need counting). A closing spread lists additional items that readers can look back through the pages to locate, offering additional opportunities to engage with the natural settings Krans evocatively draws. Ages 3–7. Agent: Meg Thompson, Thompson Literary. (Sept.)