1 2 3 Count with Me on Granddad's Farm

by Valerie D Johnson, Cee Biscoe (Illustrator)

Overview

Count your way through granddad's farm with animals, vegetable garden, smells of manure, tractors, grassy fields, and two of the best people: granddad and grandma. Includes visual aids for counting.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798986307800
Publisher:	West Oak Lane Kids, LLC
Publication date:	08/30/2022
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,100,014
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.25(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

Editorial Reviews

2023-08-08
A Black family visits a farm in Johnson’s counting picture book.

The narrator—one of three young granddaughters—notes that Granddad, a farmer, “has one hundred acres of land. He loves tractors and machines. He loves crops and animals. He loves fresh air and dirt.” Their trips to his farm include helping with animal-related chores. The location, according to the afterword, is based on that of Johnson’s North Carolinian grandfather. Biscoe’s detailed, full-color cartoon images of apple trees, strawberries, tomatoes, roaming horses, and diverse livestock evoke a prosaic, all-encompassing mythological American archetype. There’s no evidence that Granddad has hired help for his seven adorable cows, eight pigs, nine chickens, or for his many acres of orchard, which obfuscates how much labor the work entails. However, this cute story offers a refreshing depiction of a Black family’s connection to familial land and of how agricultural knowledge is passed on. Hints of a buy-local ethos are also apparent: “Granddad sells tomatoes, spinach, green beans, potatoes, and peppers to local markets.” Simple counting tasks—involving one farmhouse or four deer—alternate with longer, more involved paragraphs about farm work; a read-aloud may be modified for younger or older children. Backmatter includes advice on how parents can engage kids in counting and literacy-promoting conversations.

Representation of a Black farmer adds value to this agriculture-themed book for young readers.

Kirkus Reviews

05/22/2023

A child narrator takes readers along on a numerically based exploration of their grandfather’s farm in this interactive title that counts from one to 10. Focusing each spread on a number, Johnson establishes a subject (“SEVEN cows provide milk”) and invites readers to tot them up (“How many do you see?”), before delving into information around each subject’s traits and care (“The cows like to crunch on grass and oats. We feed them pears as a special snack”). Counted entities include the Black-cued family’s members as well as animals and harvested produce, while supporting paragraphs detail the protagonist’s experiences with their grandfather, who “makes my favorite homemade ice cream” and takes the child on a tractor ride. As Biscoe’s softly rendered images of animal pens and garden beds lead to a big family feast, the text underlines Granddad’s descriptions of family traditions, making for a fond look at agricultural rhythms and intergenerational knowledge handed down. Back matter includes conversation starters and an author’s note. Ages 2–6. (Self-published)

Publishers Weekly