Come On, Rain! by Karen Hesse is a lovely story that transports me back to the hot and sticky days of summer from my childhood. Growing up in a small town in the 80s without air conditioning, I remember well the oppressive August heat and how we watched and waited for that storm that would break the heat wave. I remember dancing in the rain and delighting in the sweet relief. This charming story told with beautiful verse, makes me smile as I remember.

“Mamma lifts a listless vine and sighs. ‘Three weeks and not a drop,’ she says, sagging over parched plants.”

Tessie asks her mama if she can put on her bathing suit and wait for the rain. Mamma says “absolutely not” because she is sure Tessie will burn up in the sun. Tessie climbs the steps and looks out over the neighborhood, looking for her friends, and looking for any sign that the rain will come soon. And then, she sees the clouds creeping over the horizon.

“Quietly, while Mamma weeds, I cross the crackling-dry path past Miz Glick’s window . . . The smell of hot tar and garbage bullies the air as I climb the steps to Jackie-Joyce’s porch . . . Jackie-Joyce comes to the door. Her long legs, like two brown string beans, sprout from her shorts. ‘It’s going to rain,’ I whisper. ‘Put on your suit and come straight over.'”

Tessie runs home and, while she makes her mama some iced-tea, Jackie-Joyce arrives wearing her bathing suit. Mama gives permission, and the girls go out to play, waiting for the rain.

And then it comes.

And it is irresistible to everyone, even the mamas.

This story is so well told and would be a delight to read aloud. I cannot wait to use it as an add-on to my Picture Book Preschool week on rain. Learn more about Come On, Rain! at Biblioguides.