Thunderstorm dancing by Katrina Germein and Judy Watson
Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781743314593
(Age: 5+) Highly recommended. Weather, Family, Dancing. I found it
hard not to sing this out loud, the music of the words, their rhythm
and rhymes so infectious that my feet were tapping as I read. I can
imagine a class full of kids learning pieces of this and singing it
out loud as it is read over and over. The words take you by storm
(sorry) as the wind and rain descend on the beach shack where the
family is staying. Grandma calls the children inside, and Daddy
plays with the kids, becoming the wind, Tommy prances around like
the clouds and Poppy stamps his feet in time with the thunder. Each
of the family is part of the storm, playing their part in keeping
the story of the storm going while it rages outside. The whole
family makes noise, stamps around the room, dances to the wind and
rain outside, with Granny on the piano. But suddenly it subsides,
everything becomes quiet once again, Granny is the sun and the child
called inside is the rainbow.
This is just delightful, allaying any child's fears of a storm,
giving many children an idea of the words used to describe a storm,
showing the might of a storm and reiterating that it does eventually
calm down and the sun and a rainbow do appear, showing that the end
of the storm has come.
For classes looking at weather this would be a great introduction to
the work, allowing children to recognise the words describing the
weather event and encouraging them to share their own stories of
storms. For dance and looking at rhyming words too, this book is a
must have, and for getting kids to join in, it is just wonderful.
The illustrations by Judy Watson move across the pages with verve
and vigour. The ink outlines filled with colour and watercolour wash
are terrific. I love the spots of white splatter paint denoting the
frothy waves, and the swirls of dancing people on many of the pages,
and the storm sweeping across. And I love the endpapers, the first
with a group of buffeted seagulls holding their own in the rain and
wind, and the last with calm and light as the storm has finished.
I'm sure youger readers will follow the fish, the gulls and the cat
with interest as they randomly appear, and others will follow the
little girl, as she comes in from the storm to cuddle with her dog
on a chair, but gradually feels more at ease with her family's
dancing, until finally she is able to get up and almost join in as
the storm goes away. Loved it all.
Fran Knight