Rainy Days

Weather Days Collection

by Deborah Kerbel, Miki Sato (Illustrator)

Sunny rain sparkling showers

Water for our trees and flowers

For preschoolers, rainy weather is full of possibility. A puddle in the back yard is just waiting for a stomp in rubber rain boots. A light drizzle is perfect for a search-and-rescue mission for worms and snails. And watching a heavy rainfall makes sitting inside with a warm bowl of soup all the cozier.

In Rainy Days, author Deborah Kerbel once again captures the magic of early childhood awe and wonder with rhyming couplets that celebrate every kind of rainy-day activity. Illustrator Miki Sato’s unique tactile collage art nearly rises from the page with fascinating features made from paper, felt, and embroidery silk. A final page includes enriching STEM activities inquisitive little ones. Rainy Days is the fourth book in the Weather Days collection that includes the critically-acclaimed titles Snow Days, Sunny Days, and Windy Days.

Genres: Picture Books, Storytime, Childrens, Fiction

24 pages, Hardcover

Published April 19, 2022

About the author

Deborah Kerbel was born in London, England, but grew up in Toronto, Canada.
A finalist for the 2012 Governor General's Literary Award, the 2010 Canadian Library Association YA Book of the Year Award, 2019 Blue Spruce Award Honour Book, and winner of the 2020 IODE Jean Throop Book Award, Deborah is the author of ten books for young readers of all ages.
Currently, Deborah lives and writes in Thornhill, Ontario, with her husband, two book loving teens, and a schnoodle named Fred.
Visit her at www.deborahkerbel.ca

Reviews

[Kailey (Luminous Libro) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Children play outdoors in the rain, or stay indoors if there is thunder and lightning. They rescue worms from the sidewalks, and sail little paper boats in the streams created by the rain. The children make "rainy soup" in buckets, and even paint with mud. As long as they have their rainboots, coats, and umbrellas, they can have fun in the rain!

The mixed-media art style is absolutely phenomenal. The bright colors are attractive, and every page is so beautiful! I love that you can see the different layers in the artwork. You can almost feel the texture of the tissue paper, cardboard, and fabric on the page. My favorite things are the little beads that look like raindrops! There are so many tiny details in each scene that I could spend several minutes looking at each page. I am literally in awe of this gorgeous art!

The text is simple, but enchanting. The story is told in rhyming couplets for each page, and it brings me back to a simpler time in childhood. I am very picky about rhyming text in children's books, and I was so delighted with the polished style of this story. The rhymes are good and the rhythm makes sense. The text flows along naturally, and is a delight to read out loud!

This is not a board book, but the pages and the cover are very sturdy and thick, just right for little hands. This charming book will remind both adults and children that there is joy to be found in simple happy things... like a rainy day.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

[Storytime With Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have yet to meet a child that is not magnetically attracted to puddles. Rainy Days by Deborah Kerbel and Miki Sato provides our youngest readers with an exploration all about the wet weather perfect for the spring.

A Toddler Tough book, the squishy cover and the thick pages can stand up to the roughest readers. Just like all the books in this beloved weather series, you could even read it in the rain. I have reviewed some of the other titles in this series and Rainy Days is just as sweet and delightful. The rhymes just roll off your tongue dropping like rain drops into the listener’s ears.

Deborah Kerbel packs a lot of inspiration into this book. The one thing about rainy days is they sometimes deter us from going outside, but with this story as inspiration, children and their parents/caregivers can’t help but want to put on their rainy weather clothes and head outside. I loved the page dedicated to the worms and snails as that is a particularly fun activity that my children always love when it rains.

Miki Sato’s artful illustrations are some of the best yet! There are so many incredible textures and layers to her work. If you look closely, I believe some of the raindrops are actually clear seed beads! Using paper and fabric to collage together interesting and eye-catching illustrations, young readers will have a ton of fun exploring this book and it is sure to be a family favourite.

We have copies of this series at the preschool where I work and I can tell you that the teachers LOVE sharing these titles with the children. They are interactive and help guide discussions about nature. We use them to connect to the things we see in our playground and our neighbourhood explorations.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Add this sturdy board book with its rounded edges and padded cover--just right for small hands to hold--to a collection on weather for preschoolers. This one joins the other excellent titles by the same creative team: Deborah Kerbel and Miki Sato. Various youngsters discover that a rainy day doesn't have to be a disappointment. After all, as the illustrations and rhyming text demonstrate, there is plenty to do in the rain, including stomping in puddles, sailing boats down a newly-born stream, and saving worms that have washed up from the ground. And sometimes, it's perfectly fine to appreciate the storm from inside. Perfect for sharing with little ones before venturing out into the rain, the book also offers suggestions for science activities related to the rain. Created with paper collage, textiles, and embroidery silk, the multilayered illustrations almost seem to pop off the pages, beckoning readers to don their raingear, find an umbrella, and catch a raindrop in their palms. There's a sense of wonder about the pages, and readers will surely realize that there is beauty in the most commonplace weather.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Preschooler joy shines through every study page, rainy days included.

My visceral reaction of comfort and delight begins when I handle the thick-and-sturdy cover of this picture book, and then the end pages delight me with the colorful images of dancing umbrellas.

The rhyming couplets work so well, unusually well for a picture book (in the opinion of this Goodreader). Remarkable language choices, for one thing. For instance:

Pouring rain, bursting sky
My umbrella keeps me dry

Just one highly creative bit of language, "bursting." More than one of these wild words, per rhyming couplet, might have seemed precious. At the opposite extreme, most rhyming picture books do not impress me with language choices, not at all. No wonder I'm shelving this book under WRITING, along with FICTION.

Also, I love Miki Sato's illustrations as much as I love the FIVE STAR words by Deborah Kergel. I don't know enough about art to put a name to the style, so I'll make one up: Childly surreal

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this series of large format board books published in Canada with its sturdy binding boards and pages that are thick with a glossy feel and definitely not able to be ripped. This particular title which is in rhyming text focuses on rain, actually the types of rain, you know drizzling, freezing, pouring, misty, stormy all the terms used everyday to describe the intensity of rain. Illustrations are done with collage from paper, textiles, and embroidery silk. Love it when the title includes the art technique and the mediums used!

[SBC · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read in the Weather Days collection by Kerbel and Sato (the other being Windy Days).

I absolutely love Miki Sato's collage art, filled with fabric and paper/card textures.

I also enjoyed the active writing with its rhymes or part-rhymes, rhythm and onomatopoeia:

Freezing rain; we complain
Tick, tick on the windowpane.

As a bonus, the book also gives us lots of ideas for fun rainy day activities - both in the story and in a little section at the back.

[Jared White · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, rhyming text and adorable, lovely illustrations show and tell many of the wonderful things you can do in the rain. The back of the book also suggests a few activities.

I think this would work well in a toddler storytime all the way up to a lower elementary one.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the exciting possibilities a rainy day brings.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rhyming picture book celebrating rainy weather activities. It can be fun watching the "flash and boom from a cozy room" or puddle stomping. A useful addition to preschool units about weather.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Toddler, preschool, and school-age

[R. L. Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe this one was read to us at our local library. I don't remember much, but it was a cute art style and I think Dixie enjoyed this one XD

[Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I liked when people were playing in the mud, that is funny and yucky. I love the rainbow.” - Luke

[Cristina Quattrone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the art. Could be a really neat arts-integrated read aloud for elementary students to experiment with collage.

[Pinky LO · Rating 4 out of 5]

puddles and rain

[Cat_on_skates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute series with wonderful art