The Water Hole

By Graeme Base

Book Overview

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:

AnimaliaThe Eleventh Hour: A Curious MysteryThe Water Hole: A Counting Picture Book

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0810945681
• ISBN13: 9780810945685
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 10.8" x 11.5"
• Age Range: 2 to 5 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 2

Customer Reviews

Amazing illustrations

My kindergarten class loved this book! Unfortunately, one of them lost the library's copy so the rest of them were out of luck. I was able to purchase 2 copies for less than $5 each. Now we have a copy for our library and I have a copy for my 'Grandma collection" that I have loaned to the classroom. Graeme can't be beat for his detailed artwork and fun story lines.

RIch and deep visual experience

What an incredible visual journey -- you can spend many many minutes on each page. Hidden animals and much to explore! On the surface this is a simple book, but it's anything but! Our standard 3-4 yr old birthday gift recently.

Spectacular! Required for home library.

This was a gift to my 2-year old from a girlfriend/kinder teacher. My son is now almost 5, his brother is 2.5, and this book is dog-eared! We read this at least 3x/week. The illustrations are breathtaking. Their animal vocabulary is amazing. Their attention to detail has definitely improved in many areas - they look for hidden images in all their books now. Animalia, also by Graeme Base, is spectacular too - another favorite in our home.

What a challenge!

My Great Aunt gave this book to my family for Christmas. My wife and I sat down while the kids were napping and started to work through the book. About 90 minutes of working together we finally found all 10 frogs on the last page. It was a fun time for both of us. Sometimes we would have to put the book at arms length just to get a different perspective. Anyone who has kids will love this book. My 11 year old niece was enthralled with it and could hardly put it down.Make sure that you look at the scenes in the background and try and guess what they represent. The page of all the extinct animals was amazingly well done.The only hint that I will give is that the frog with the funny hat is the hardest to find and I can almost guarantee that he will be the last one that you find.

An Incredible Interactive Book

My son is 4 1/2 and absolutely loves animals. We bought this book and have not put it down. The book is much more than a counting book. It is a geography lesson as well. Each page is built around a different region of the world and has animals from that region hidden in the scenery. The illustrations are remarkable. One word of caution: do not read this book before bedtime unless you plan ahead, it is so much fun to search for the animals that you may be up all night!

A Counting Book and Much, Much More.....

Visit the water hole where animals from all over the world and many different habitats come for a drink and a splash. First there's the rhino, then two tigers, three toucans and four snow leopards. Is it my imagination, or is the pool growing smaller? Next come five moose, six catfish, seven pandas, eight ladybugs, nine tortoises and finally ten kangaroos. "There was nothing to say. The water was all gone. And the animals went away." The earth is now dry and cracked, waiting for rain. The sky grows dark, the clouds appear and splat; one big drop hits the ground..... Graeme Base has outdone himself with this deceptively simple counting book. His text, complete with humorous asides and wonderful animal sound effects is easy and fun to read. But it's Mr Base's amazing, innovative and creative arwork that really makes this book stand out. By using a die-cut hole, youngsters can actually watch the water hole get smaller and smaller with each page turn, until it all but disappears. His detailed, lush scenes are a veritable feast for the eyes and beg to be explored. Each bold, bright and busy page is bordered with the silhouettes of animal filled landscapes and if you look closely and very carefully, you'll be able to find these additional animals hidden in the pictures. Perfect for children 4-8, The Water Hole is a counting book, science book, geography book and marvelous interactive book all rolled into one and a must for all home libraries.