Sheep Won’t Sleep: Counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s

An insomniac girl named Clarissa tries counting sheep to fall sleep, but it has the opposite effect: “A loud baa made her open her eyes, and to her surprise, she saw ten sheep in her room.” Counting additional animals—alpacas by twos, llamas by fives, and 50 yaks by 10s—results in 100 animals landing in Clarissa’s room, flamboyantly colored in bold shades and patterns. To clean up the menagerie, Clarissa counts backward, winding the animals’ wool into an enormous ball of yarn, which she knits into an afghan. It’s a rowdy introduction to counting, addition, and subtraction that’s anything but soporific. Ages 4–7. (Aug.)