Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes

by Mem Fox

Overview

As everyone knows, nothing is sweeter than tiny baby fingers and chubby baby toes. . . . And here, from two of the most gifted picture-book creators of our time, is a celebration of baby fingers, baby toes, and the joy they—and the babies they belong to—bring to everyone, everywhere, all over the world!

This is a gorgeously simple picture book for very young children, and once you finish the rhythmic, rhyming text, all you’ll want to do is go back to the beginning . . . and read it again! The luminous watercolor illustrations of these roly-poly little ones from a variety of backgrounds are adorable, quirky, and true to life, right down to the wrinkles, dimples, and pudges in their completely squishable arms, legs, and tummies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781406331264
Publisher:	Walker & Company
Publication date:	02/28/2011
Sales rank:	374,696
Product dimensions:	6.70(w) x 6.00(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

MEM FOX is the author of many acclaimed books, including Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, Possum Magic, Koala Lou, Time for Bed, and, for adults, Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever. She lives in Adelaide, Australia.



HELEN OXENBURY is the world-class illustrator of dozens of beloved picture books, including Michael Rosen's We're Going on a Bear Hunt, Phyllis Root's Big Momma Makes the World, which won the Boston Globe-Horn Book Picture Book Award,and her own Tom and Pippo series. She lives in London, England.

Interviews

A Message from the Author

Hi, there! I'm one half of the team (the writer) that created Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes and I want to say a big thank you for loving my new book enough to look me up on the B&N.com website. I love the book too! I'm thrilled that it appeared on the bestseller lists in its very first week of publication and that it's still there as I type this in late October, 2008.

What's the story behind this story? One day in 2005 I found myself in Boston talking to a large group of parents with many differences: some were black, some white, some brown, some well-to-do, some poor, some young, some older. Their children, and in particular their babies, were universally adorable and s the parents bent over the table afterwards as hey were having their books signed, I played with the babies' fingers, marveling at their exquisite tiny-ness. I left Boston late on that snowy Friday afternoon to begin my very long plane journey from Boston to my home in Adelaide, South Australia. In a dreamy state, as I dozed on the plane, I recalled the similarities of the peoples of the world, the tiny fingers of every single child, and once again wished we could focus what we all had in common instead of the differences and hatreds that divide us. The book appeared in my brain before I was even fully awake.

Aside from writing, my other passion is begging parents to read to their children from an early age, for the huge fun of it, let alone for the untold benefits it bestows, both socially and educationally. My careful advice and noisy opinions on this subject can be found between the covers of my book for parents: Reading Magic: How Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever.

Would it be outrageously cheeky of me to suggest that parents begin to read to their babies as early as possible, starting with Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes? The rhythm of the words and the delight of the artwork will, I hope, entrance every little child in the world, as well as bring to their tired parents a certain kind of quiet and loving calm.

Cheers!

Mem Fox

Editorial Reviews

English author/illustrator Helen Oxenbury, winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal, teamed up with celebrated Australian illustrator/author Mem Fox for this around-the-world look at babyhood, to be published next month. The happy result is a jig-along rhyme sure to delight parents and tots alike.
—The Washington Post

Kristi Jemtegaard

Put two titans of kids' books together for the first time, and what do you get (besides the urge to shout, "What took you so long?")? The answer: an instant classic. Fox's (Time for Bed) text works off the simplest premise: babies around the world, even those who seem like polar opposites, have the same 20 digits in common. But there's real magic at work here. Given their perfect cadences, the rhymes feel as if they always existed in our collective consciousness and were simply waiting to be written down: "There was one little baby who was born far away./ And another who was born on the very next day./ And both of these babies, as everyone knows/ had ten little fingers and ten little toes." Oxenbury (We're Going on a Bear Hunt) once again makes multiculturalism feel utterly natural and chummy. As her global brood of toddlers grows-she introduces two cast members with every new stanza-readers can savor each addition both as beguiling individualist and giggly, bouncy co-conspirator. Ages 3-5. (Oct.)

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Publishers Weekly

PreS

"There was one little baby/who was born far away./And another who was born/on the very next day./And both of these babies,/as everyone knows,/had ten little fingers/and ten little toes." So opens this nearly perfect picture book. Fox's simple text lists a variety of pairs of babies, all with the refrain listing the requisite number of digits, and finally ending with the narrator's baby, who is "truly divine" and has fingers, toes, "and three little kisses/on the tip of its nose." Oxenbury's signature multicultural babies people the pages, gathering together and increasing by twos as each pair is introduced. They are distinctive in dress and personality and appear on primarily white backgrounds. The single misstep appears in the picture of the baby who was "born on the ice." The child, who looks to be from Northern Asia or perhaps an Inuit, stands next to a penguin. However, this minor jarring placement does not detract enough from the otherwise ideal marriage of text and artwork to prevent the book from being a first purchase. Whether shared one-on-one or in storytimes, where the large trim size and big, clear images will carry perfectly, this selection is sure to be a hit.-Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT

School Library Journal

A pleasing poem that celebrates babies around the world. Whether from a remote village or an urban dwelling, a tent or the snow, Fox notes that each "of these babies, / as everyone knows, / had ten little fingers / and ten little toes." Repeated in each stanza, the verse establishes an easy rhythm. Oxenbury's charming illustrations depict infants from a variety of ethnicities wearing clothing that invokes a sense of place. Her pencil drawings, with clean watercolor washes laid in, are sweetly similar to those in her early board books (Clap Hands, 1987, etc.). Each stanza introduces a new pair of babies, and the illustrations cleverly incorporate the children from the previous stanzas onto one page, allowing readers to count not only fingers and toes but also babies. The last stanza switches its focus from two children to one "sweet little child," and reveals the narrator as that baby's mother. Little readers will take to the repetition and counting, while parents will be moved by the last spread: a sweet depiction of mother and baby. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews

Blonde top-knots, springy black curls, haystack red straw and sleek black hair surround smiling, frowning, sneezing or contemplative baby faces. Anyone who has ever tweaked a little piggy will quickly start chanting the infectious refrain from this 'digital' romp.”—Washington Post Book World, September 7, 2008

Washington Post Book World

"This gently lilting read-aloud is just right for bedtime, or anytime your child could use a little extra comfort. You’ll go ga-ga yourself over the adorable watercolors of babies around the world." —Parenting , September 2008

"Put two titans of kids' books together for the first time, and what do you get (besides the urge to shout, "What took you so long?")? The answer: an instant classic . . . there's real magic at work here."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes gently presents—but never preaches—a satisfying lesson about humanity and international harmony."—BookPage

"A standout for its beautiful simplicity, this picture-book collaboration between Fox and Oxenbury aims a message of diversity and tolerance at very young children. . . . Clusters of adorable mulitcultural babies from around the world toddle across the pages until just one child receives three kisses on the nose from her loving mom, a sweet gesture that parents will want to act out with their own children. A gentle, joyous offering."—Booklist, starred review

"Fox's lilting verse just has to be read aloud, and preschoolers will quickly pick up on and join in on the anticipated refrain. Oxenbury's spacious illustrations, featuring her irresistible round-headed tots (and, of course, plenty of chubby baby digits), emphasize the babies' differences and will engage even the youngest listeners in the on-page action."—The Horn Book Magazine, starred review

"In 'Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes,' two beloved picture-book creators — the storyteller Mem Fox and the artist Helen Oxenbury — merge their talents in a winsome look at babies around the world."—The New York Times Book Review

"A witty and winsome look at babies around the world that has a toe-tapping refrain: the words sound easy and familiar, as though they have been handed down to children forever. And the story ends with a pitch-perfect moment: one little baby who is 'mine, all mine.' "—The New York Times Book Review, Notable Children's Books of 2008

"'Light as air and sweet as honey' might be a way to describe this delectable confection about babies, here, there and everywhere."—The Globe and Mail

Wichita Eagle, Great Gift Recommendations 2008

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