Grab your galoshes! Today I review an onomatopoeia-rich picture book debut about the many joys of rain puddles from fellow 2020 Debut Crew member Rebecca Koehn.

Title: AFTER THE RAIN

Written by: Rebecca Koehn

Illustrated by: Simone Krüger

Beaming Books, March 2020

For ages: 3-6

Themes/topics: rain, water, play, sharing, friendship

First two spreads:

Drip.

           Drop.

                     Plink.

The rain is over.

The gutter overflows.

Levi grabs his boat.

Summary (from the publisher):

“Drip, Drop, Plink. The rain stops, and Levi runs outside to play in a stream of rain water. But Polly puts an end to his fun when she doesn’t want to share. It’s a puddle fight! Until they see that the water is disappearing fast. Truce! They find a way to save the water and discover that it is more fun to play together. After the Rain puts a new twist on the rainy-day picture book about sharing and learning to work together.”

Why I recommend this book for rainy days – and sunny days:

There’s something magical about that moment when the rain stops, the sun comes out, and rain puddles abound. Kids don rainboots, grab toys that float, and head outside to play. AFTER THE RAIN captures the joy of imaginary play using water that “rushes, roils, ripples.” Levi’s boat floats in the water and races in a river of rainwater. But when Polly says, “My river. No boats here!” a battle begins. However, the water is disappearing down the drain and the kids soon realize they must cooperate to save the water. After building a dam, they have a lake to play in! The colorful illustrations depict a great sense of movement – both the kids’ and the water’s. The text is filled with super fun language, especially onomatopoeia, that reads aloud beautifully. This delightful picture book is sure to inspire kids to get outside and play in puddles!

(For a colossal collection of picture book reviews, please visit this page on Susanna’s site: http://susannahill.com/for-teachers-and-parents/perfect-picture-books/.)