Cleo's Counting Book

Cleo the cat takes a neighborhood walk and counts from one to ten, then back again in reverse — a simple structure that teaches forward and reverse counting in a single read. Stella Blackstone's rhyming text supports early phonological awareness alongside the number concepts, and Caroline Mockford's warm, colorful illustrations give the book genuine child appeal. Publishers Weekly noted Cleo as a charming, consistent concept-book character, and the series has maintained steady standing in early childhood education settings. The honest caveat is that this is squarely a concept book: the narrative is thin, the counting-to-ten territory is crowded, and older preschoolers who have already mastered the skill will move on quickly. For its target age, though, it does exactly what it sets out to do.