Counting to Bananas

A hilarious, mostly-rhyming picture book about a banana and narrator who can't quite agree on what their book is about. Perfect for fans of Mo Willems' We Are in a Book and Adam Rex's Nothing Rhymes With Orange!

"Mo Willems fans will give this book one, two, three, four, five stars!" --Parents

"Tillotson's rib-tickling debut is not to be missed!"--Kirkus

When a narrator starts filling this story with fruit, Banana can’t wait to step into the spotlight. The book is called Counting to Bananas, after all. But as more and more fruits (and non-fruits) are added to the story, Banana objects. When will it be time for bananas?!

With laugh-out-loud text from debut author Carrie Tillotson and brought to life by illustrator Estrela Lourenço this is the story of a banana and narrator who have very strong opinions about what should (and should not!) be in this book.

The perfect next read for fans of Jory John and Pete Oswald's The Bad Seed series, as well at Ryan T. Higgins' Hey, Bruce!

Praise for Counting to Bananas:

A 2022 Oregon Spirt Book Award Honor Book
A Texas Library Association 2×2 Reading List Selection
A 2024 Beehive Book Award Nominee
An Oregon Book Award Finalist
A School Library Journal 2022 Undies Case Cover Award Winner
A 2023 Red Bud Read Aloud Award Nominee
An Amazon Best Children’s Books of 2022 So Far pick
An Amazon Editor’s Pick
An Oregon-authored Great Summer Read

"In the tradition of Mac Barnett’s Count the Monkeys, Tillotson’s rib-tickling debut is not to be missed . . . Lourenço’s digitally created illustrations of cartoon fruit with faces and expressive animals are bright, dynamic, and foolish. Fruity fun for everyone." --KirkusPraise for Counting to Bananas:

"An endearing yet opinionated banana makes learning numbers hilarious…Mo Willems fans will give this book one, two, three, four, five stars!" --Parents

"In the tradition of Mac Barnett’s Count the Monkeys, Tillotson’s rib-tickling debut is not to be missed . . . Lourenço’s digitally created illustrations of cartoon fruit with faces and expressive animals are bright, dynamic, and foolish. Fruity fun for everyone." --Kirkus

Before Carrie Tillotson started writing children’s books, she worked as a biostatistician. Her job involved counting a lot of numbers (but not many bananas). Counting to Bananas is her debut picture book. She lives in Oregon with her family, two dogs, and two chickens. Although bananas are not her favorite fruit, she loves a warm slice of banana bread. You can visit Carrie online at carrietillotson.com or follow her on Twitter @carrietillotson and on Instagram @carrietillotson.

Estrela Lourenço is a Portuguese professional children’s book author and illustrator, and also a storyboard artist for animation. She has been living in Ireland since 2009, when she met her Irish partner and their dog, Chewie, who both made her fall in love with the country even more. Her favorite fruit is peaches, but she keeps getting bananas because they’re Chewie’s favorite! You can visit Estrela online at estrelalourenco.pt or follow her on Twitter @LourencoEstrela and on Instagram @estrela.lourenco.