The emphasis here is on adventure; counting is merely an enjoyable by-product. Tom is a young boy who can't sleep, so his father suggests he ``. . . try counting sheep.'' He begins, but the seventh sheep, much sprier than the others, leads him into ``. . . a wood, wild and fearsome.'' There the lad narrowly escapes meetings with wolves, pythons, mountain goats, pirates, penguins, vampire bats, ghosts, and tigers. He survives by shrewdly hiding or speeding far away by car, on foot, or skis. When he is tempted to linger with an amazing assortment of 88 ghosts, his terrified stuffed bunny drags him away. The cumulative tale is told in rhymed verse that flows smoothly when read aloud. Oversized double-page spreads are lively with cheerfully frightening creatures appearing in a variety of sizes, angles, and shapes, creating interest and movement. Centered on each right-hand page is a box of text and easily countable sets of silhouettes. As a bonus, end papers offer a clever board game that begins and ends at Tom's bed. For reading aloud, for careful perusal, and for advanced counting--to 100--this is a book children will return to again and again. But a bedtime story, it's not. --Nancy Seiner, The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc