Home in the Rain
Age 5+
Picture Storybooks
The extraordinary touches a seemingly ordinary moment of family life, in this tender, heart-warming story.
“A remarkable story … young and old readers will be spellbound throughout this torrential tale” Observer
The Winner of the Australian Prime Minister's Literary Award 2017
Francie and her mum, who is expecting a baby girl, are driving home from Grandma’s in the heavy rain. When they're still far from home, they stop for a picnic. And as the car steams up, Francie presses her little finger on the window, spelling out "Daddy" and "Mummy" and leaving one space free, ready and waiting for the name of her soon-to-be sister...
Resources
Creators
Bob Graham is a Kate Greenaway-winning author-illustrator who has written and illustrated many acclaimed children's picture books including The Poesy Ring, How to Heal a Broken Wing, How the Sun Got to Coco's House, Max, Jethro Byrde: Fairy Child and April Underhill: Tooth Fairy. His 2011 title, A Bus Called Heaven, is endorsed by Amnesty International UK and was the winner of the 2012 Children's Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year Award – a prize Bob has won an unprecedented seven times. He has been awarded the prestigious Prime Minister's Literary Award in Australia twice, in 2014 for Silver Buttons and in 2017 for Home in the Rain. Bob lives in Melbourne.
Reviews
“Graham creates the atmosphere not through excessive description; his prose is quiet, low key. Rather it is his illustrations that draw us in. The rain streaks across the pages, the water sprays out from under the traffic wheels. Above all there are the details, the different perspectives, nothing is forgotten. […] Exceptional.”
Books for Keeps
Thought-provoking storytelling, as ever, about a family finding inspiration in the most unlikely places.
The Bookseller
Full of joy, understanding and warmth, Graham’s acutely beautifully observed celebration explores the way inspiration can, and often does happen, in the most unlikely of places. Exquisitely crafted illustrations complement a heartfelt and moving little story that captures both the ordinariness and the extraordinariness of a day in the life of a family that will be familiar to us all.
Lancashire Evening Post
Children’s Book of the Week – This poetic, ingeniously constructed tale shows children the familiar while stimulating empathy and awareness of others.
The Sunday Times
Bob Graham provides plenty to pore over and to discuss in his tender depictions of everyday life. It’s a lovely book to share, especially in those families where a new baby is imminent.
Red Reading Hub
Home in the Rain by Bob Graham is a remarkable story from another mast of picture book art. […] Graham has the confidence and talent to tell his sodden adventure like it is, even down to the state of the family car with “two stale toffees found under old parking tickets in the door”. Young and old readers will be spellbound throughout this torrential tale.
Observer
“[…]Bob Graham can make the ordinary extraordinary. […]Memorable, expressive characters (Graham has, for decades now, created characters rich in diversity, well before it was a Twitter hashtag) ; a story that makes you think and have all the many feels; and warm, detailed illustrations: this book has it all.”
Kirkus
“Perfect for any family awaiting their new baby.”
Parents in Touch
“Perfect for peaceful moments, rainy days and bedtime reading, it demonstrates precisely how it is the little things in life that make big impressions.”
Fallen Star Stories
A quiet, moving book about becoming a big sister, missing a father who works away from home, and illustrating how, sometimes, small moments can have the biggest impact.
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