Count Your Way Through Iran

Count your way from one, or [Arabic numeral 1] (yek), to ten, or [Arabic numeral 10] (dah), in Farsi! Using simple text, authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce readers to the Iranian culture. Learn about everything from Omar Khayyams famous four-line poems to the seven countries that border Iran. Colorful illustrations bring ancient and modern Iran to life.

Gr. 2-4, younger for reading aloud. Titles in the ongoing Count Your Way series use a simple 1-to-10 number format to introduce basic cultural concepts about a specific country. This installment begins with a short paragraph of facts about Iran, including its size, population, and official language, followed by double-page spreads that tie an interesting aspect of Iranian life to a number between 1 and 10. One, for example, represents the number of Iranian car companies; 2 represents the Towers of Silence, an ancient, sacred site. Arabic-language numerals (and accompanying pronunciation guides) appear on each page, and the airy, stylized watercolors, including a map and an image of the Iranian flag, are instructive and cheerful. A good supplementary choice for early elementary discussions about the Middle East. The countries of Zimbabwe and Afghanistan are examined in other recent books in the series. Gillian Engberg
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