Cotton Cloud Refuses to Rain
Age range 3+
Cotton Cloud wants to be the best cloud ever! She will never rain, she says, because rain makes the people SAD. But the endless sunshine dries up the lake, withers the plants and cracks the soil. Sun and Wind tell Cotton Cloud it is time for her to rain! But stubborn Cotton Cloud refuses to listen. Until one day she looks down on the hot, tired, thin people and sees they are no longer happy. Her heart swells with sorrow, and as her tears turn into rain, the dry earth turns green again. The people laugh and dance happily in the rain!
ELIZABETH F. HILL is a poet, whose poems for children appeared most recently in The Bee Is Not Afraid of Me: A Book of Insect Poems (Emma Press). She is also the author of a non-fiction abecedary of Canada (All ‘Bout Canada: A Compendium of Canadiana (Nimbus Publishing). She holds a MSc in library science and a PhD in intercultural education, has lived and worked on four continents, loves reading, synchronised swimming, weaving, music, and canoeing. She lives in Canada.
HANNAH GEORGE is the illustrator of Welcome to Hinch Farm (Penguin Random House 2023) by Mrs Hinch (Instagram lifestyle influencer with a following of 4.6 million), and the Chicken Mission series by Jennifer Gray (Faber & Faber). Hannah’s illustrations of characters and landscapes are full of life and vibrancy. She uses a combination of watercolour, pencil, ink and digital processes. She lives in England.
