When the Storm Comes

“What do you do when the clouds roll in,/ When the wind chimes clang and the weather vanes spin?” In verse that rolls like a sea shanty, Ashman (Take Your Pet to School Day) watches as animals and people ride out a storm. Bad weather looms even on the copyright page: trees blow sideways, and gray clouds threaten a peaceful blue sky. As the story begins, a girl looks out her window with a worried expression. A family of foxes watches expectantly, too: “We watch./ We sniff./ We perk our ears,/ And listen as the rumbling nears.” A child runs home as a parent beckons. While humans take shelter (“We close. We cover,/ Latch and tie”), gulls seek coves and whales dive deep. Pencil and digital spreads by Yoo (Kitten and the Night Watchman) have a hand-worked feel, with loosely drawn lines and sponge print textures that suggest the advancing pressure and glad release of a storm passing. Final spreads show the ocean-adjacent community cleaning up, then gathering for refreshments. The emphasis is clear; in the face of natural forces, human and animal communities are alike in their vulnerability. Ages 3–7. [em]Author’s agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. (May) [/em]