Rainy Day 911

Here are a few titles to help get your kids in the mood for a rainy day outing:

Mud
By Mary Lyn Ray, Voyager (preschool)
This picture book celebrates the ooey-gooey wonderfulness of mud through a variety of seasons.

Mud Puddle
By Robert Munsch, Annick Press (ages four to eight)
Robert Munsch is a masterful, comic storyteller, and kids always love his wild tales. This one is no exception and features a young girl named Julie Ann, who is attacked by a giant mud puddle every time she goes outside, but eventually gets revenge on the ferocious puddle.

Rainy Day Play!
By Nancy Fusco Castaldo, Williamson (ages three and up)
Here's a book that's brimming with activities for children ages three and up. While many of the suggestions are indoor ideas, a section on outdoor fun includes some creative games and outings, like a salamander hunt combined with a reading of Anne Mazer's lovely book, The Salamander Room.

True Survival Stories
By Jack Monroe, Puffin Books (age nine and up)
Hand this book to an older child, say fourth grade and up. After they read these tales of plane crashes, shipwrecks, and a chilling Greenland exploration, kids will have a hard time complaining about being out in a gentle summer shower. Interspersed with these accounts of exciting survival are lists of practical survivor tips.