Counting Books

January 28 – National Blueberry Pancake Day

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About the Holiday

Are your favorite pancakes loaded with luscious blueberries? Then you’ve landed on the right holiday! Today’s celebration gives you the perfect reason to indulge, so find those blueberries tucked in the freezer or run to the store and whip up a batch of these palate-pleasing pancakes for breakfast or dinner! 

Thank you to Carrie Finison and G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for sending me a copy of this book for review!

Plenty of Pancakes

Written by Carrie Finison | Illustrated by Brianne Farley

 

Topsy the opossum is planning a surprise “Welcome Spring” big pancake breakfast to welcome back her bear friend LouAnn from her winter hibernation. She’s already invited all of their friends and now it’s time to start cooking. What’s on the menu? “They’ll have berries with syrup, and cider to share, and plenty of pancakes, enough for a bear!”

Illustration © 2026 by Brianne Farley. Text © 2026 by Carrie Finison. Courtesy of G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers.

Topsy measures and pours and fries up five perfect pancakes. Whistling a tune, she walks away for a moment then hears a “clunk!” Turning around, she sees the plate is empty. She attributes the loss to hungry squirrels, and whips up another batch. Soon, she has “five perfect pancakes, hot from the pan. / Tender and crispy, and all for—”

Illustration © 2026 by Brianne Farley. Text © 2026 by Carrie Finison. Courtesy of G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers.

But in the time it would take to say “LouAnn,” this stack disappears too. Then another and another! At last, Tospy’s relieved to find all of her other guests arriving and ready to help. With so many bakers and a groundhog to guard them, the group gets to work. “Topsy counts pancakes: five, ten, fifteen, twenty. / Twenty’s a lot . . . but she’s not sure it’s PLENTY.” And so . . . they make more.

Just then LouAnn emerges from her cabin with a surprise. She has two new babies to introduce, “. . . but Topsy’s suspicious. / She looks at the cubs and sees there are traces / of pancake all over their sweet fuzzy faces.” Topsy doesn’t let on, though, and just makes a toast “to babies and spring” as the friends all share pancakes aplenty! 

Illustration © 2026 by Brianne Farley. Text © 2026 by Carrie Finison. Courtesy of G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers.

Carrie Finison’s recipe for a delectable story time contains all the ingredients kids clamor for—humor, drama, endearing characters, and the chance to be in on a secret right from the start. Finison’s rollicking sentences bounce and bound through the story with perfect rhythm and rhyme, and children will eagerly chime in on the funny repeat and clipped-off phrasing “. . . and all for—.” Plenty of Pancakes is a joy to read aloud, fun for kids who like to count, and a book that both children and adults will choose again and again.

Brianne Farley invites readers to this forest feast with her bright, delightful gouache and pencil illustrations that are loaded with personality and clever details (LouAnn’s alarm clock displays only pictographs for spring, summer, fall, and winter). Farley whips up excitement with action-packed pages where whisks spin, pancakes fly, the serving plate clunks, thunks, and crashes, and everyone pitches in to make this “welcome back” breakfast a blast. Kids will especially like spying the two little cubs that escape Topsy’s notice hiding here and there just within reach to gobble up stacks of treats.

Exuberant, warmhearted, and inviting readers’ giggly participation, Plenty of Pancakes makes a perfect gift and will be an immediate favorite in any home, school, or library collection.

Ages 4 – 8

G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 2026 | ISBN 978-0593700174

Carrie Finison writes poetry, stories, and books for kids, including the picture books Dozens of Doughnuts; Pigs Dig a Road; Don’t Hug Doug (He Doesn’t Like It); Lulu & Zoey: A Sister Story; and Hurry, Little Tortoise, Time for School! She lives outside Boston with her husband, their son, their daughter, and two cats who allow her to work in their attic office. Visit her at carriefinison.com.

Brianne Farley is the author of Worm Makes a Sandwich, Secret Tree Fort and Ike’s Incredible Ink. She also illustrated Dozens of Doughnuts by Carrie Finison, the Charlotte the Scientist books by Camille Andros, and No Buddy Like a Book by Allan Wolf. Brianne studied creative writing and art at Macalester College, then received her MFA in illustration from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She lives in Michigan. You can visit Brianne at BrianneFarley.com and follow her @BrianneHFarley.

You’ll also enjoy Dozens of Doughnuts, the first book in this series, which also stars LouAnn and her friends! Read my review here!

National Blueberry Pancakes Day Activity

Plenty of Pancakes Activity Pages

 

Kids will flip for these fun coloring and word search activities inspired by Plenty of Pancakes. You can download them from Carrie Finison’s website, here!

You can purchase Plenty of Pancakes from these booksellers

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop

Picture Book Review

 

October 15 – World Maths Day

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About the Holiday

Math on a Sunday? You bet! Today’s holiday is about making math fun by encouraging kids to take part in competitive math-themed games with the chance to win prizes and certificates. This world-wide phenomenon plays out online too, as schools and individuals are linked across the globe. Even the youngest children are invited to participate, so why not get out those math puzzles and have some fun. You can also use math to solve some real-life puzzles today too—as you’ll see in today’s book.

Grandma’s Tiny House: A Counting Story!

Written by JaNay Brown-Wood | Illustrated by Priscilla Burris

 

Grandma’s tiny blue house sits on a tidy little yard between two multi-story homes. The walls of Grandma’s tiny house are full of framed photographs of her family and even her pets. Today is a very special day, and “ONE grandma waits in her big easy chair, / while TWO turkeys send scrumptious smells through the air.” There’s a knock on the door, and Grandma opens it to find three neighbors carrying four pots of “hot greens and ham hocks galore.”

Before Grandma can close the door, five more friends stride up the walk, bringing six dozen biscuits and pear jam. Then “SEVEN cool uncles stroll up in a line, / with EIGHT jugs of lemonade, ice-cold and fine.” There are nine aunts and ten cheesecakes squeezed into the den, and all their kids are happy to be here again. “ELEVEN nephews join, slapping high fives / and fumbling TWELVE sweet-potato pies.”

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-grandma's-tiny-house-portraits

Image copyright Priscilla Burris, 2017, text copyright JaNay Brown-Wood, 2017. Courtesy of Charlesbridge Publishing.

Sure, there are girls too—thirteen, in fact, and they’ve brought a wagon of fourteen honeydew melons. But those are the big kids; who else has come running? Fifteen excited little ones are ready for Grandma’s hugs. When everyone’s inside “that’s when the walls bulge. There is no more space! / How will we all eat in this too-tiny place?”

But the tiniest girl has a big idea and whispers it into Grandma’s ear. The house may be small, but the “yard’s long and wide.” Her thought? “Why don’t we move our big dinner outside?” It’s the perfect solution, so everyone grabs a plate or a dish, the silverware, chairs, and tables and pour out the door. As evening approaches and the sun goes down, the family, friends and neighbors talk, eat, and play at Grandma’s tiny house.

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-grandma's-tiny-house-outside

Image copyright Priscilla Burris, 2017, text copyright JaNay Brown-Wood, 2017. Courtesy of Charlesbridge Publishing.

JaNay Brown-Wood’s joyful counting book adds up to a celebration of family and friends and offers a wonderful way to discuss math concepts, such as counting, amount, and spatial awareness, with little ones. Brown-Wood’s vivacious rhymes and dynamic vocabulary create a lively read-aloud that organically incorporates counting from one to fifteen into a larger story about the pleasures of boisterous gatherings and the love of extended families.

Priscilla Burris’s vibrant and animated illustrations will put a smile on little ones’ faces from the first page to the last. As the smiling Grandma gazes out the window of her tiny home, she’s not only waiting for her guests to arrive but is inviting readers to join in too. The two-page spread of family photos gives kids an inkling of the party to come, and as each laughing, talking, waving group arrives at Grandma’s, the excitement of the day—and the enticement to count, count, count—begins. Each of Burris’s many characters displays unique personality traits as they talk, sing, high-five, run, shout, and rejoice.

The people and objects to count are presented clearly, allowing children to easily find them. As the group gathers together inside the house and out in the yard, readers will no doubt want to count them all, letting them see addition at work. Each spread also offers a game of hide-and-seek with Grandma’s puppy and kitten.

Grandma’s Tiny House: A Counting Story is the kind of picture book that will get kids excited about math and their own place within a family. It would make a wonderful gift and addition to home as well as classroom libraries.

Ages 2 – 5

Charlesbridge Publishing, 2017 | ISBN 978-1580897129

Discover more about JaNay Brown-Wood  and her books and find resources for adults on her website.

View a portfolio of illustrations, drawings, and books by Priscilla Burris on her website.

You’re all invited to Grandma’s Tiny House book trailer!

World Maths Day Activity

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Totally Cool Mystery Phrase Math Puzzle

 

There’s no mystery to how fun math can be! Use the numerical clues in this printable Totally Cool Mystery Phrase Math Puzzle to discover a hidden message! Add the numbers under each line then use that number to find the corresponding letter of the alphabet. Write that letter in the space. Continue until the entire phrase is completed.

Picture Book Review