The Day the Rain Moved In

Book excerpt: In this beautiful picture book, the wondrous merges with the ordinary when it starts to rain ... inside the house! One day, it starts to rain in Pauline and Louis’s house. The whole family looks for the source of the rain, but nothing can be found! Dad tries to mop up the puddles that form on the floor, Mom holds an umbrella over her head to read, and Pauline and Louis wear their raincoats. Everyone tries to pretend that nothing is wrong. Pauline and Louis are embarrassed and try to keep their rainy house a secret from the other kids at school, expecting to be teased. What would happen if someone found out? Outside, the sun is shining. But inside the house, something new is happening. Plants sprout from the carpet, the bathtub and the kitchen sink. A giant tree spreads its branches through the living room. The neighborhood children, curious about the leaves they see through the windows, come inside. Instead of teasing, they want to play. Pauline and Louis aren’t alone with their secret any longer. In fact, having a tree in the house is kind of fun! Soon, the branches grow too big for the house, and sunlight streams in through holes in the roof. There’s something else, new, too — the rain has finally stopped. A story about embracing difference, celebrating the wondrous and expecting the best from our friends. This nuanced and layered story will have both very young and school-aged children requesting repeated readings. Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.