A stunning fusion of counting book, puzzle book, storybook, and art book with timeless colors and humor from Graeme Base, the international bestselling creator of Animalia. The Water Hole is a spectacular visual feast that's more than just a book―it’s an immersive experience for the whole family, perfect for repeated exploration. Children will love counting from 1 to 10 as animals of the world gather around a water hole. As 1 rhino gives way to 2 tigers, then 3 toucans, on up to 10 kangaroos, die-cut pages reveal the water hole in 10 different worldwide habitats, from African plains to Himalayan mountains to the Australian outback. The Water Hole is an ingenious fusion of: A Counting Book: Count along from one African Rhino to ten Australian Kangaroos as animals from different continents gather to quench their thirst. - A Global Story: Journey across diverse, vividly illustrated habitats―from the African plains to the Amazonian jungle to the Himalayan mountains. - A Puzzle Book: Challenge yourself to find theten times ten (one hundred!) other creatures cleverly camouflaged within the stunning artwork on every page. Watch as the water hole itself gets smaller with each turn of the die-cut pages, visually reinforcing the book's timely and life-affirming message aboutecological balance, conservation, and the precious nature of water. The Water Hole features the layers of interest that make Graeme Base’s books among the world’s best-loved picture books. Careful readers will find additional animals, many of them endangered, silhouetted in the borders of every spread and hiding within every landscape. It’s a book children will ask to be read again and again. This timeless classic sparks curiosity, numeracy, and a love for our planet's wildlife. Perfect for ages 4-8. Don't miss these favorite books from Graeme Base: Animalia - The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery - The Water Hole: A Counting Picture Book Who can resist the allure of the hidden wilderness water hole? Certainly not one rhino. Not two tigers. Nor three toucans. Pretty soon the delicious pool is drawing moose, catfish, pandas, tortoises... and more than 100 other critters from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and beyond. But is it our imagination or is that rhino-sized water hole dwindling to a mere shadow of its former self, a puddle not fit for eight ladybugs, let alone 10 kangaroos? As the seasons change across the world, and the animals get thirstier, the water supply diminishes. Eventually, even the flowery-shirted frog that has stoically lingered through the drought packs his suitcase and takes off. The only hope now is a drop of rain on the parched earth... With his usual elaborate detail, Graeme Base, mad genius behind Animalia , The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery , and other wild and wonderful titles, presents a one-of-a-kind counting book. Naturally, Base would never be content to stick with a simple 1 through 10 format. Readers of all ages will linger over each spread, first counting the highlighted animals and giggling at the translation of their grunts and growls (the moose's "Moo, moo, mooooooiii!" means "Hey, get your hoof out of my ear!"). Then it's time to check out the diminishing size of the die-cut hole in the pond. And finally, readers will want to find each of the 10 additional animals cleverly hidden in every illustration, based on the silhouetted creatures in the border. A safari on paper--with an environmental and mathematical education thrown in for good measure. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter Gr 3 Up-Come to the water hole and immerse yourself in an extravagant experience. The offering from a master of visual delight is at once a counting book, a zoological tour, and a fascinating hidden-picture challenge. As 10 different animals from 10 different countries come to quench their thirst, a metaphorical water hole diminishes until it dries up completely and the visitors leave. Then the cycle begins again with a single drop of water, a torrent of rain, and a luxuriant new watering hole that draws all of the creatures back again. With a quarter page of simple counting text and three-quarters page of sumptuous watercolor and gouache, the story unfolds on many levels. The water hole itself is a concentric cutout oval that shrinks from page to page. There are silhouettes in the borders of the creatures indigenous to each country and those same animals are hidden in the dense background. A comic note is added with 10 frogs, some wearing clothes, whose numbers also decrease as the water dries up. While some children may miss the illustrative subtleties indicating that each water hole is actually in a different part of the world, this numerical and ecological companion to Animalia (Abrams, 1987) is a visual treat. Beth Tegart, Oneida City Schools, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. Ages 3-6. From the creator of Animalia (1986) and The Sign of the Seahorse (1992) comes another beautifully illustra