First published 2020
The Blunder family starts their day with chaos. Ten children create disasters with laundry, flood the bathtub, and upset the animals before lunch arrives. Their exasperated mother sends them outside with two simple commands: watch each other and return before sunset. The siblings scatter to play, but trouble begins when they try to regroup. Each child attempts to count their brothers and sisters. They count forward, then backward. They try English, then Spanish. They count by twos and threes. Every method produces the same wrong answer: nine children. One sibling has vanished. Panic sets in as sunset approaches. They face returning home to tell their mother about the worst mistake possible. The children cannot solve their counting crisis, and time runs out. This tale explores how easily confusion strikes and how family bonds survive even the silliest problems.
Genres: family-life, humor, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, humorous, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, misunderstanding
32 pages · Hardcover · Candlewick