How Many Donkeys?: An Arabic Counting Tale

Jouha is loading his donkeys with dates to sell at the market. How many donkeys are there? His son helps him count ten, but once the journey starts, things change. First there are ten donkeys, then there are nine! When Jouha stops to count again, the lost donkey is back. What's going on? Silly Jouha doesn't get it, but by the end of the story, wise readers will be counting correctly - and in Arabic! Margaret Read MacDonald and Nadia Jameel Taibah are the tellers of this funny tale from the Middle East. The sunny pictures were painted by Carol Liddiment.

Margaret Read MacDonald loves folktales and travels the world telling wonderful stories and teaching others how to share them. How Many Donkeys? An Arabic Counting Tale won the Best Foreign Children's Book Award at the 2010 Sharjah International Book Fair. She lives in Seattle, Washington. www.margaretreadmacdonald.com

Nadia Jameel Taibah grew up hearing Saudi folktales told by her mother, a talented storyteller. She works at King Abdul-Aziz University, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, helping special education teachers. Nadia lives in Jeddah with her husband and son.

Carol Liddiment lives in England, in the Suffolk countryside with her two sons. As a child she spent much of her time riding horses and adopting wild animals! Now she spends her time illustrating books for children.