Books for Independent Reading
VERY EASY
- The Cloud Book
- by Tomie dePaola
(Science/Health)
Holiday 1975 (32p)
Features the ten most common
clouds. Available in Spanish asEl
libro de las nubes.
- Rain Song
- by Lezlie Evans
Houghton 1995 (32p)
An approaching thunderstorm is the
subject of this brightly illustrated
poetic text.
- Come a Tide
- by George Ella Lyon
Orchard 1990 (32p)
Four days and nights of rain cause a
river to overflow its banks.
- The Flood That Came to Grandma's House
- by Linda Stallone
Upshur 1992 (21p)
One family's true experiences when
Hurricane Agnes struck.
- Action Books: Weather
- (Science/Health)
National Geographic 1995 (12p)
A pop-up book that explains clouds,
lightning, and other aspects of weather.
EASY
- The Story of Lightning and Thunder
- by Ashley Bryan
(Multicultural)
Atheneum 1993 (32p)
This African folktale explains how
Lightning and Thunder found their way
to the sky.
- Before the Storm
- by Jane Yolen
Boyds Mills 1995 (32p)
The author captures the feel of a hot
summer day before a thunderstorm
cools things off.
- Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
- by Judi Barrett
Macmillan 1978 (32p) also paper
In the town of Chewandswallow food
rains from the sky.
- The Mud Family
- by Betsy James
(Multicultural)
Putnam 1994 (32p)
Sosi and her family depend on precious
rainfall to grow their corn in this story
of Anasazi life.
- The Five-Dog Night
- by Eileen Christelow
Clarion 1993 (32p)
Old Betty discovers that her neighbor
Ezra survives cold winter nights by
using his five dogs for warmth.
- How Thunder and Lightning Came to Be: A Choctaw Legend
- by Beatrice Orcutt Harrell
(Multicultural)
Dial 1995 (32p)
A humorous legend of how two birds
accidentally created thunder and
lightning.
- Hurricane
- by David Wiesner
Clarion 1992 (32p)
A tree downed by a hurricane becomes
a source of imaginative play for two
boys.
- Chinook!
- by Michael O. Tunnell
Tambourine 1993 (32p)
A man regales a brother and sister with
extraordinary stories of the warm
winter winds called chinooks.
- Weather Forecasting
- by Gail Gibbons
(Science/Health)
Macmillan 1987 (32p) also paper
Presents a behind-the-scenes look at a
modern weather station.
- The Big Storm
- by Bruce Hiscock
(Science/Health)
Atheneum 1993 (32p)
The author explores geography and
weather in recounting the storm of
April 1982.
- Irene, la valiente (Brave Irene)
- by William Steig
Text in Spanish.
AVERAGE
- The Weeds and the Weather
- by Mary Stolz
Greenwillow 1994 (40p)
No matter what the weather, Mrs. Weed
takes her dog Pocket for a daily walk
while her cat Clover naps at home.
- The Storm
- by Marc Harshman
Cobblehill 1995 (32p)
With a tornado quickly approaching,
Jonathan, confined to a wheelchair,
wonders how he will get to safety.
- The Tree That Rains
- by Emery and Durga Bernhard
(Multicultural)
Holiday 1994 (32p)
In a myth from the Huichol Indians of
Mexico, hard-working Watakame
survives a flood with help from Great-
Grandmother Earth.
- Thunderstorm!
- by Nathaniel Tripp
Dial 1994 (480p)
How a farmer and his wild-animal
neighbors are affected by the approach
and arrival of a severe thunderstorm.
- Weather Experiments
- by Vera Webster
(Science/Health)
Childrens 1982 (48p)
Color photographs illustrate easy-to-
follow weather experiments. Available
in Spanish asExperimentos
atmosféricos.
- The Mousehole Cat
- by Antonia Barber
Macmillan 1990 (32p)
A fisherman and his cat Mowser sail
out into a storm to save their village
from starvation. Available in Spanish
asLa gata gatona.
- Weather Everywhere
- by Denise Casey
(Science/Health)
Macmillan 1995 (40p)
Explains how temperature, wind, and
moisture interact to create weather
conditions.
- Hurricane! The Rage of Hurricane Andrew
- by Pat Lantier-Sampson and the
Miami Herald News Team
(Social Studie)
Gareth Stevens 1994 (48p)
Pictorial presentation of one of the
most destructive storms in history.
- The Stranger
- by Chris Van Allsburg
Houghton 1986 (32p)
A man whom Farmer Bailey hits with his
truck and brings home seems to have a
mysterious influence on the weather.
- Weather: Poems for All Seasons
- by Lee Bennett Hopkins
A collection of weather poems from
Langston Hughes, Ogden Nash, Valerie
Worth, and others.
- Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie
- by Peter and Connie Roop
Carolrhoda 1985 (40p)
In 1856, Abbie Burgess had to keep a
Maine lighthouse in operation during a
brutal storm.
- Hurricanes and Tornadoes
- by Norman S. Barrett
(Science/Health)
Watts 1990 (32p)
Details the causes of hurricanes and
tornadoes and how to protect oneself
from them. Available in Spanish as
Huracanes y tornados.
- Weather
- by Seymour Simon
(Science/Health)
Morrow 1993 (40p)
The author discusses weather and what
causes it to change.
- Belinda's Hurricane
- by Elizabeth Winthrop
Dutton 1984 (64p); Puffin 1989 paper
The coming hurricane is a perfect
excuse for Belinda to extend her visit
to Granny May.
- Weather Whys
- by Mike Artell
(Science/Health)
Harper 1995 (96p)
Facts, tongue twisters, riddles, and
activities provide answers to weather
questions.
- Wild Weather: Hurricanes!
- by Lorraine Jean Hopping
(Science/Health)
Scholastic 1995 (48p)
Traces the paths of violent weather,
from Hurricane Andrew to the cyclones
of Bangladesh.
CHALLENGING
- Blizzard
- by Christopher Lampton
(Science/Health)
Millbrook (64p)
Describes the development and
destructive force of these severe winter
storms.
- The Day It Rained Forever: A Story of the Johnstown Flood
- by Virginia T. Cross
Viking 1991 (64p); Puffin 1993 paper
When torrential rains cause a dam to
overflow, the disaster affects Christina
and her family.
- Storms
- by Jenny Wood
(Science/Health)
Puffin 1990 (32p); also paper
Explanations of the formation and
evolution of storms. Available in
Spanish asTormentas.
- It's Raining Cats and Dogs: All Kinds of Weather and Why We Have It
- by Franklyn Branley
(Science/Health)
Houghton 1987 (128p); Avon 1993
paper
A collection of weather facts, folklore,
and scientific experiments makes
learning about the weather fun.
- The Weather Sky
- by Bruce McMillan
(Science/Health)
Farrar 1991 (38p)
In a seasonal presentation of the
weather, children learn about weather
patterns and clouds.
- Weather
- by Brian Cosgrove
(Science/Health)
Knopf 1991 (64p)
Explains the causes of thunder,
lightning, hurricanes, and tornadoes.
Books for Teachers to Read Aloud
- Weather Report: Poems
- by Jane Yolen
Wordsong 1993 (64p)
Fifty-one poems about the weather
from thirty poets.
- Rain Player
- by David Wisniewski
(Multicultural)
Clarion 1991 (32p)
A Mayan boy must defeat the Rain God
in a ball game to save his people from
disaster.
- The Year of No More Corn
- by Helen Kettemen
Orchard 1993 (32p)
Old Grampa tells tall tales about the
spring rains in Indiana in 1928.