Books with title Rain Drop Splash Book and Audiocassette Tape Set

"Drip drop splash went the rain all day." The rain formed a puddle. . .and became a pond. . .and spilled over into a lake. . .and grew larger and larger until it joined with a river and travelled out to sea. With this classic picture book, young readers can follow the course of a heavy rain as it drenches people and animals and changes the landscape below. With its poetic text and lovely, detailed illustrations, Rain Drop Splash is a delight to read, rain or shine.

In a story just right for young learners, Lewison adds bounce and freshness to a review of numbers. A little girl in a shiny red raincoat and green boots searches for the silver lining and catalogs the many things she encounters along the way. As she travels across the pages, the text counts up to 10 ("One little raindrop, / dark, dark sky. / Two little raindrops, / clouds go by") and back down again after she arrives home ("Ten little toes / in a nice warm tub. / Nine soapy bubbles, / scrub-a-dub-dub!"). The narrative is spare, simple, and rhythmic--easy for young listeners to commit to memory and "read" aloud--and Paparone's cheerful, boldly colored artwork will keep the rainy-day doldrums at bay. A bright pick-me-up for a soggy afternoon.

Charles Fuge, the acclaimed artist of I Know a Rhino, Sometimes I Like to Curl Up in a Ball, and It's a Monster Party, is back with another winner that's sure to become a favorite with kids-and their parents. Not only does it have the cutest illustrations ever, but the story is one dear to children's hearts: the importance of a loving, protective father. A cuddly little bear has a tale to tell about his dad, "the roughest, toughest, biggest, strongest dad in the whole jungle." The real fun is in the illustrations of cute cubs marching behind and listening- and running off one by one in fear as they hear that Daddy has teeth sharper than an alligator, more claws than an eagle, and can roar as loud as a lion. But when the little bear finds himself alone and gets scared, it's Papa who comes to save the day. The final illustration -with Daddy carrying his smiling cub, will warm any heart.

This eye-catching picture book transports readers to a tropical rain forest. Smoothly incorporating a great deal of information, the text follows creatures such as a sloth, capuchin monkeys, and a poison-dart frog as they move through their habitat. Guiberson conveys the relationships among different animals by describing their activities at various times of day. Small dramas such as a squabble over nest space reveal the continual change and movement in this environment. Effective use of onomatopoeia further enhances the narrative with forest sounds. Jenkins uses his signature collage style to bring this realm alive for viewers. Although his humans seem a bit stiff, they are minor figures in the overall portrayal of the lush, green world. Even collections with several volumes about rain forests will want this introduction.

The author and the illustrator of Bugs! and Skunks! present another hilarious book with a slapstick rhyme, this one about snakes taking over a small boy's world. The creepy creatures start off as a heap under his bed; then they slink down the stairs, shimmy up the walls, hide, and jump out of books and cabinets. Words and pictures wallow in the shudders. Maybe snakes do have some uses: as garden hoses, for cleaning ears, as nifty stethoscopes. But just as the boy is getting used to the invaders, he opens up the shutter to find a huge glaring eye, and then a great, terrifying boa squishes him in its coils. Is that final close-up a capture or an embrace? Munsinger's ink-and-watercolor images extend the silliness. They are packed with nonsense detail and yet clear and accessible for preschoolers, who will recognize the creepy delight of slimy monsters hissing in their ears.

A delightful depiction of a universal bedtime routine, told with warmth and humor. When a baby raccoon asks her imaginative father for a simple kiss at bedtime, she finds herself on the receiving end of a string of silly smooches. When Dad plants the lightest butterfly kiss on Lisa's cheek, the pair become surrounded by a lush forest filled with blue-shaded, bamboo-style trees and periwinkle butterflies. A circus kiss calls for a little horseplay under a yellow-striped tent, as Lisa's stuffed-animal friends practice their trapeze swinging. Ten Cate's bright and appealing illustrations perfectly complement Roep's loving text and artfully capture the endearing bond between father and daughter. The result is a gentle, inventive bedtime story that will coax giggles from both the reader and the "read-to." Better still, there's a built-in opportunity here for parents and their children to pucker up and invent their own special nighttime rituals.

This jolly picture book should prove the perfect elixir for young readers with a case of doctor-itis. Driving his big red van, Dr. Duck makes forest-, barnyard- and pasture-calls to treat his menagerie of patients, prescribing such remedies as "Cough syrup for a sheep/ Who had a bad flu/ Pink pills for a cow/ Too hoarse to moo" (dialogue balloons within the art show the duck telling the sheep, "This will do for the flu" and reassuring the cow, "Take two and you'll moo!"). But when Dr. Duck finds himself laid up with a terrible fever, who will care for him? Luckily his grateful patients come to the rescue and Dr. Duck is soon fit as a fiddle. In jaunty and sweet-natured rhymes, Ehrlich (who appears to be Harriet Ziefert, writing under a pseudonym) clearly expresses the rewards Dr. Duck reaps in his caring profession. Rader's pry and sunny watercolors capture a compassionate and friendly animal community at its best. Satisfied kids will soon attest that Dr. Duck is no quack.

Many little children will see themselves in this bunny who doesn't like to wash his ears. And why should he? The soap makes him sneeze, and his ears drip. To his mother's dismay, Hopscotch comes up with creative ways to cover his ears while in the tub--among them, boxer shorts on his head. Then Hopscotch's big-boy cousin, Bobtail, visits, and a clear case of hero worship is born. When Hopscotch sees Bobtail happily washing his ears, he gets the idea: this is what big bunnies do. Now ear washing doesn't seem to be such an odious task. Everything works well here. The light, bright, oversize watercolors are just right for group viewing, and they features a perfectly darling young bunny with cuddly stuffed-animal appeal. The text is short, good for the age group, but the message comes through clearly. Clever parents will see that the solution offered here will work for problems other than dirty ears.

Two irresistible pigs, Thomas and Joseph, thwart their bossy farmyard neighbors a la Tom Sawyer in this amusing tale. Two hens, a rabbit, and a duck are disgusted with the messy pigpen and the food Thomas and Joseph eat. But when the hens propose that the pigs paint the pigpen fence, the pigs prove so clumsy that the hens paint it themselves. So too with picking vegetables and digging a water hole for the pigs to bathe in. Alert children will see the end coming: the other animals realize that the pigs are "not so dumb." Droll facial expressions and body language in the watercolor, ink, and colored pencil pictures create lively personalities in the farmyard cast of characters. Fans of Piggie Pie and Palatini's other books will appreciate anew the writer's skill in playing with language; the repetition, rhythm, and alliteration will make the story a pleasure to read aloud.