The Adventures of Kubarik and Tomatik, or Fun Mathematics

Perhaps this book was the first to introduce you to the concepts of “less” and “more”, “longer” and “shorter”, “one” and “many”. Or maybe you’ve never heard of “The Adventures of Kubarik and Tomatik”. In any case, if you have preschool-age children, Genrikh Sapgir’s mathematical fairy tale should definitely be in your home library.

Almost forty years ago, writer Genrikh Sapgir, methodologist Lyudmila Levinova and artist Vitaly Statsinsky created the book “The Adventures of Kubarik and Tomatik, or Fun Mathematics.” The book immediately became a sensation. In the Soviet Union, there were quite a few popular science books for children, but teaching mathematics to little ones who had barely learned to speak?!

Progressive parents used “Kubarik and Tomatik” to teach their two-year-olds, and grandparents prepared preschoolers for first grade. On forums dedicated to childhood books, “Kubarik and Tomatik” is remembered as one of the most beloved, “read to holes” books.

The book has not been republished for a long time, the last time was in the 90s. And now, finally, "Pink Giraffe" is releasing the long-awaited new edition.

We ourselves have loved this book since childhood and have often looked for rare copies in second-hand bookstores to read and study with our children. So we understand well those parents who dream of introducing their children to Kubarik and Tomatik.

For the new edition, which preserves the fairy tale, the poems of the great Sapgir, and the drawings of the classic book illustration artist Statsinsky, we asked Yulia Lugovskaia (developer of educational materials, author books for teaching reading about Pip) to come up with new tasks that children can do with their parents.

Recommended reader age: 2+

Author: Sapgir Genrikh Veniaminovich
Artist: Vitaly Statsinsky
Year of issue: 2024
Publisher: Pink Giraffe
Pages: 160
Cover type: Hardcover