Rain! Hardcover – Picture Book, March 5, 2013

We first received this book as a gift, and now we buy this book as a gift for others every opportunity we get.

With a handful of words and some adorable illustrations, Ashman and Robinson have created a story about finding joy in the little things and sharing with those around you. The story follows a grumpy old man who gets up and frowns his way out of the building and down the street to a cafe. At the same time a young boy and his mother are also getting up and heading to that same cafe, where they meet the grumpy old man. The boy finds joy jumping in the puddles and pretending to be a frog. When they meet the grumpy old man grouches at the boy's offering of a cookie and a ribbit which leaves the boy grouchy, but only for a moment. When the boy realizes the man left his hat behind, he takes it upon himself to return it. Before he hands back the hat though, he puts it on and frowns, demonstrating for the man what he looks like to those around him. The old man takes back his hat and then surprises the boy by pointing to his frog hat and trying it on. This time when the boy offers him the cookie and a ribbit, it is gratefully accepted. Robinson's illustrations are adorable as usual, as well as bright and colorful making a nice compliment to the spare text.

Loved this book for my kids when we were learning about our weather. The illustrations are colorful.

The art is great, and does a great job of depicting a slice of life of two characters in a large city (think Manhattan). But be advised that the story doesn't have a narrator; instead, it's more like sequential art with individual characters speaking their own dialogue. So, it might be a little harder to follow for young ones. When I read it to my little one, I find myself acting as narrator and filling in who was talking when to provide additional context.

Our perspective matters. A young child and an older gentleman have vastly different outlooks on life and it greatly impacts their entire day. When they happen to have a chance encounter on a rainy day they are both better for it. Anything illustrated by Christian Robinson is GOLD!

This is a really sweet story. The book follows an old man and young child through their rainy morning. The old man is a curmudgeon but the child is bright and opptimistic. Text is minimal so you can expand based on your audience. The themes in this book are good a reminder for children and adults alike: your attitude has a profound impact on those around you and the power of positivity.

Cute book. Very simple and fun story. We like the twist at the end. Also very colorful too

This book is cute (images are great) and the underlying message is great. Its about an old man and a young boy and it depicts their very different attitudes - one being grumpy and pessimistic about the rain, the other having fun with it. I'm giving it 3 stars because its not so readable...you have to sort of make up your own narration as you go. My daughter kind of likes it but if I wouldn't recommend.

I was skeptical about this book at first--there are very few words in it. However, my 1 year old absolutely loves it. He can tell exactly what's going on and gives us a great opportunity to talk about why the older man might be grumpy and how the young boy helps him. The images are beautiful. Love this book

My LO finds this hilarious for some reason. I think the beauty of this book is that there are only pictures so the child can put their own imagination to what the characters are doing. Great book for kids!

I like the way it show the two different sides of the rain experience by the boy and the old man. Very creative.

Child wont be able to understand much as this book has almost no wording...

The pictures were beautiful and it was an excellent book for students to discuss and make connections.