Ten Little Rabbits
by Maurice Sendak; illus. by the author
Preschool    Harper/HarperCollins    32 pp.
2/24    9780062644671    $19.99

The jacket copy of this very simple, essentially wordless counting story calls its young protagonist Mino, but the M emblazoned on his stage podium could just as well stand for Max or Mickey or Maurice, as another little boy with flair, talent, and determination. One by one, the boy pulls ten rabbits from a hat; he puts them back the same way. The fun is in the counting, sure, and Sendak is careful to let us see the right number of rabbits on any given page, but there’s also drama in the changing expressions on the boy’s face as a magic trick that begins in pride and insouciance starts to overwhelm him. A true Sendak hero, he sets himself to rights. Originally privately printed for Philadelphia’s Rosenbach Museum in 1970, Ten Little Rabbits, in casual black line with some splotches of color on the rabbits, might not be Important Sendak, but its pleasures are clear and go straight to the heart.

Pubissue-From the March/April 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.