Sprightly rhyming couplets advance a simple story of children at play in a park when it begins to rain. “See the breeze / toss the trees. / Plip, plop. / Drip, drop.” The kids make the most of watery opportunity, jumping in puddles and finding things that float, until “Flash! Boom!” Thunder and lightning send everyone rushing for the car. “Wipers swish. / Sneakers squish” as they head for the snug comfort of home. Javaka Steptoe’s beautiful, textured collage illustrations show a jubilant—and wet!—group of African American children and a dad engaged in the “rain play” that Cynthia Cotten’s lively narrative describes. (Ages 3–6)

Here it comes! Cool drops splash down, scattering the grown-ups. But the children love romping in the rain, until—BOOM!  This joyous, rhyming poem captures the many delights of a rainy day.