Journey with Alamance Christian School readers through the pages of books to lands far away as words describe people, places, and ideas worthy of exploration.
When you first pick up this children's picture book, you are
immediately impressed with the soft, intuitively gentle art that is done using
various mediums. The colors speak loudly
of dreamy, amazing, childhood - blues, reds, greens basic browns and black but
overtly soft.
When Arthur awakens, he has had a dream of a small boat it
is green and pink and has a sail. No one
listens when he tells of his amazing dream. He keeps on trying to gain their attention,
but they are so busy and are not listening to him. Yet on his head is perched the boat from his
dream and it is amazing. It keeps
getting added to - polka dots on the sail, stripes on the mast, a gold flag, a figurehead. And it is growing!
Arthur shouts, "Listen to me," and at that time, Arthur and the
sea catch their attention.
This is a dreamy tale of exaggeration and of a boy who has a
dream and whose telling of the dream grows with the telling. The lively and whimsical illustrations are a delight to
behold and tell the story from start to finish with beauty and boldness. Though the art is bold, it is also soft like
a child and will appeal wonderfully to the child in your life as you read about
Arthur's amazing dream!
My
thoughts on the book: As a meteorologist
himself, Bill Evans, has a contagious enthusiasm for his venue and a love for
kids - especially middle-schoolers - that spills over in his desire to teach
and enthuse these kids with his own love for his specialty - the weather!
It's Raining Fish and Spiders is a treatise into the
world of tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, droughts that will capture the
attention of the most bored, uninterested, "I couldn't care less,"
middle-schooler. In fact, Bill Evans created this creative book for these kids because
he wants them to understand and love the weather just as he does. And, did I say, he loves the kids?
There is a bit about Mr. Evans and how he got his own start in broadcasting advancing to meteorologist
for Eyewitness News on ABC in NYC. There
are adventures as he has been experiencing "the weather" at it's most
interesting.
The "lessons" are presented as kid type questions or
ponderings. "How are Tornados Born?" "What Makes a Snowstorm a
Blizzard?" "Dude, Take It from 'Tommy Tsunami,' You Do Not Want to
Catch That Wave!" Kind-of get the
picture now? Yea! It is written to entice kids. They will have fun learning.
Experiments? Yes,
there are some in the "Try This at Home" featured at the end of the specific
sections.
This book will be great as an addition for the classroom,
the school library, the kid's shelf at home, for home-schoolers, and even for the average grown-up
who wants to learn more about all that swirling, whirling, chilling, wet stuff
we call "the weather."
About the Book: One of the things Bill Evans enjoys the
most is talking to young people about weather. Middle-schoolers in particular,
Evans says, are deeply interested in the natural world and in weather.
It’s Raining Fish and Spiders covers everything, from tornadoes and
hurricanes to lightning and the different kinds of snowflakes. Evans addresses
weather myths and facts, from “Can it really rain fish?” to “Will opening a
window save my house during a tornado?”
Evans also tells his most exciting personal weather stories: flying with the
Hurricane Hunters, riding pell-mell through Tornado Alley with storm chasers,
and visiting the coldest place on Earth. The book includes simple weather
experiments that can be performed at home without expensive equipment.
Extensively researched, fact-filled, and packed with charts, tables,
illustrations, and amazing photographs, It’s Raining Fish and Spiders is
an entertaining and educational addition to the library of anyone interested in
weather, science, and the natural world.
About the author: Bill Evans is a New York Times Bestselling
author.
Bill Evans is a multiple Emmy
Award-winning, nationally-renowned senior meteorologist. He has
appeared on Good Morning America and Live! with Regis and Kelly. Evans
has received the Outstanding Meteorologist Award from the National
Weather Service and has hosted the National Hurricane Conference. Bill
Evans and his family live in Connecticut.
Disclosure: I was
provided an autographed copy of It's Raining fish and Spiders to present
to the middle-school students at Alamance
Christian School
for their learning enjoyment and enrichment.
I was not required to write a review or render a positive opinion.
