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The non-profit children’s literacy initiative Multicultural Children’s Book Day was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen, two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those book into the hands of young readers and educators.
Eight years in, MCBD’s mission to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves continues. Read about our Mission & History HERE.
Eight years in, MCBD’s mission to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves continues. Read about our Mission & History HERE.
I am honored to again be a part of this wonderful literary event as book reviewer for MCBD.
"Sunday Rain" by Rosie J. Pova, Published by Lantana Publishing, UK is
a delightful book that shares the joy of a small boy who retreats with his fictional friends getting lost in his book. He also relishes the carefree adventure of playing out in the rain, overcoming his shyness to make new friends.
Rosie J. Pova is a multi-published, award-winning children's author, poet, speaker, and writing coach on a mission to inspire children not only to read and write more, but to use their creativity, follow their passions, dream big and believe in themselves."Sunday Rain" by Rosie J. Pova, Published by Lantana Publishing, UK is
a delightful book that shares the joy of a small boy who retreats with his fictional friends getting lost in his book. He also relishes the carefree adventure of playing out in the rain, overcoming his shyness to make new friends.
Pova is also a Writing Instructor for the Dallas Independent School District through The Writer's Garret, an instructor with Writing Workshops Dallas, teaching picture book courses to children's writers, and the founder of two children's writing contests--KWEST and Haiku Hype-- as well as the organizer of The Write Universe Kidlit Writers Workshops in Dallas, TX. She also serves as a judge for Rate Your Story. Rosie visits schools and shares her inspirational journey as an immigrant from Bulgaria and how she became a published author, encouraging kids to persist, push through obstacles, and hold a high vision of themselves.
“Sunday Rain” is a picture book aimed at ages 4-7 years. Pova found the spark for her story from a childhood experience growing up in Bulgaria. One hot summer afternoon a sudden rain came up. She remembers fondly twirling in the rain feeling so adventuresome and carefree. And for Pova, reading was one of her favorite past times. She incorporates these childhood memories into her book “Sunday Rain.”
Elliott, the main character is a young boy about 5 or 6. He has moved into a new neighborhood. He enjoys spending time reading books in his room. One of the stories in his book, a princess fighting a dragon and trying to keep a boat afloat in the sea plays a central part of the story line. One Sunday afternoon it suddenly rains. With some encouragement from his mother, Elliott decides it would be another adventure to go out and join other children playing in the rain. He brings his small sailboat to sail in a puddle. A new imaginative world comes alive as the children then board Elliott's boat and sail off to an island with the dragon on the sail.
There are so many things to love about this book. The author uses strong active 'ing' verbs making the storyline energetic moving it a brisk pace. Attention getting sound words such as BOOM, WHOOSH, TAP, ROAR, STOMP are written in bold letters. They are sprinkled throughout the story. The storyline is relatable as young children have similar experiences as Elliott. It's a discussable book with a class and/or parent. Diversity is addressed showing Elliott, a boy of color and his biracial family. Some suggested lesson plans from the author are included at the end of this review as well as a coloring sheet. Since Elliott and other children wear their rain boots for playing in the Sunday rain, a coloring sheet of a pair of rain boots could be an added idea.
It's quite amazing to me to know that author and illustrator rarely communicate during the production of the book. Yet seamlessly somehow the text and illustrations work together producing a very satisfying book. Amariah Rauscher, illustrator for "Sunday Rain" lives in central Illinois. She is a full-time illustrator and mom to two girls. She has been illustrating full-time for the past 4 years. Her undergraduate degree is in Psychology, with a Masters in Communication. Rauscher is the illustrator for the popular Princess Truly books.
Elliott, the main character is a young boy about 5 or 6. He has moved into a new neighborhood. He enjoys spending time reading books in his room. One of the stories in his book, a princess fighting a dragon and trying to keep a boat afloat in the sea plays a central part of the story line. One Sunday afternoon it suddenly rains. With some encouragement from his mother, Elliott decides it would be another adventure to go out and join other children playing in the rain. He brings his small sailboat to sail in a puddle. A new imaginative world comes alive as the children then board Elliott's boat and sail off to an island with the dragon on the sail.
There are so many things to love about this book. The author uses strong active 'ing' verbs making the storyline energetic moving it a brisk pace. Attention getting sound words such as BOOM, WHOOSH, TAP, ROAR, STOMP are written in bold letters. They are sprinkled throughout the story. The storyline is relatable as young children have similar experiences as Elliott. It's a discussable book with a class and/or parent. Diversity is addressed showing Elliott, a boy of color and his biracial family. Some suggested lesson plans from the author are included at the end of this review as well as a coloring sheet. Since Elliott and other children wear their rain boots for playing in the Sunday rain, a coloring sheet of a pair of rain boots could be an added idea.
It's quite amazing to me to know that author and illustrator rarely communicate during the production of the book. Yet seamlessly somehow the text and illustrations work together producing a very satisfying book. Amariah Rauscher, illustrator for "Sunday Rain" lives in central Illinois. She is a full-time illustrator and mom to two girls. She has been illustrating full-time for the past 4 years. Her undergraduate degree is in Psychology, with a Masters in Communication. Rauscher is the illustrator for the popular Princess Truly books.
Kudos to illustrator Rauscher. Her attention to detail to match the storyline was amazing. Even the curtains had sailboats on them to tie in with Elliott's sailboat. All the children featured in story wore different colored rain boots. Elliott's mother called his rain boots sharkies as they had on shark designs. This was a special request from the author to illustrator to match the text to Elliott's rain boots adding shark designs on them. The illustrations are visually appealing using bold primary colors to engage the reader. The cover design of a princess holding an umbrella over Elliott to protect him from rain speaks to the idea of friendship, helping one another.
Suggested rainy day activities for kids from the author include:
1. Rain craft (Materials: construction paper, crayons, cotton balls, Popsicle stick, glue)
2. Make and eat a rainbow snack (grapes, blueberries, kiwi, pineapple, melon, strawberries, bananas, whip cream -- or substitute for any other fruits, veggies and cheese in the corresponding colors.)
3. Build an Umbrella Reading Fort for story time and read! (What you'll need: two chairs, an umbrella, blue ribbon, blankets and pillows, books, your favorite stuffed animal.
1. Rain craft (Materials: construction paper, crayons, cotton balls, Popsicle stick, glue)
2. Make and eat a rainbow snack (grapes, blueberries, kiwi, pineapple, melon, strawberries, bananas, whip cream -- or substitute for any other fruits, veggies and cheese in the corresponding colors.)
3. Build an Umbrella Reading Fort for story time and read! (What you'll need: two chairs, an umbrella, blue ribbon, blankets and pillows, books, your favorite stuffed animal.
4. A printable coloring page
FOUNDER’S CIRCLE: Mia Wenjen (Prgamaticmom) and Valarie Budayr’s (Audreypress.com)
Platinum Sponsors: Language Lizard Bilingual Books in 50+ Languages, Author Deedee Cummings and Make A Way Media
Gold Sponsors: Barefoot Books, Candlewick Press, Capstone, Hoopoe Books, KidLitTV, Peachtree Publishing Company Inc.
Silver Sponsors: Charlotte Riggle, Connecticut Association of School Librarians, Author Kimberly Gordon Biddle, Pack-N-Go Girls
Bronze Sponsors: Agatha Rodi and AMELIE is IMPRESSED!, Barnes Brothers Books, Create and Educate Solutions, LLC, Dreambuilt Books, Dyesha and Triesha McCants/McCants Squared, Redfin Real Estate, Snowflake Stories, Star Bright Books, TimTimTom Bilingual Personalized Books, Author Vivian Kirkfield, Wisdom Tales Press, My Well Read Child
MCBD 2021 is honored to be Supported by these Author Sponsors!
Poster Artist: Nat Iwata
Authors: Author Afsaneh Moradian, Author Alva Sachs & Three Wishes Publishing Company, Author Angeliki Stamatopoulou-Pedersen, Author Anna Olswanger, Author Casey Bell , Author Claudine Norden, Author Debbie Dadey, Author Diana Huang & Intrepids, Author Eugenia Chu & Brandon goes to Beijing, Green Kids Club, Author Gwen Jackson, Author Janet Balletta, Author Josh Funk, Author Julia Inserro, Karter Johnson & Popcorn and Books, Author Kathleen Burkinshaw & The Last Cherry Blossom, Author Keila Dawson, Maya/Neel Adventures with Culture Groove, Author Mia Wenjen, Michael Genhart, Nancy Tupper Ling, Author Natalie Murray, Natalie McDonald-Perkins, Author Natasha Yim, Author Phe Lang and Me On The Page Publishing, Sandra Elaine Scott, Author Shoumi Sen & From The Toddler Diaries, SISSY GOES TINY by Rebecca Flansburg and B.A. Norrgard, Susan Schaefer Bernardo & Illustrator Courtenay Fletcher, Tales of the Five Enchanted Mermaids, Author Theresa Mackiewicz, Tonya Duncan and the Sophie Washington Book Series, Author Toshia Stelivan, Valerie Williams-Sanchez & The Cocoa Kids Collection Books©, Author Vanessa Womack, MBA, Author Veronica Appleton & the Journey to Appleville book series
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FREE RESOURCES from Multicultural Children’s Book Day
Diversity Book Lists & Activities for Teachers and Parents
Homeschool Diverse Kidlit Booklist & Activity Kit
FREE Teacher Classroom Activism and Activists Kit
FREE Teacher Classroom Empathy Kit
FREE Teacher Classroom Kindness Kit
FREE Teacher Classroom Physical and Developmental Challenges Kit
FREE Teacher Classroom Poverty Kit
Gallery of Our Free Posters
FREE Diversity Book for Classrooms Program
BOOK REVIEWER: Sue Ready is a freelance writer, book reviewer (EverReady Book Reviews) former middle school and elementary teacher. She is the president of Northwoods Arts Council in Hackensack, MN and chair for the book arts Northwoods Art and Book Festival. Sue writes a twice monthly food column for a local newspaper and blogs at sockfairies.blogspot.com
Thank you for this review and wonderful list of resources. I especially like the umbrella reading fort idea.
ReplyDeleteThis book would be perfect for your grandchildren. Lots of details to discuss from book.
DeleteThank you for the wonderful review, Sue! :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a pleasure to review such a delightful and endearing story.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a lovely book! I love the extension activities. Thank you for participating in Multicultural Children's Book Day!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a sweet and beautiful book, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete