I DON'T LIKE RAIN!

A rabbit turns a rainy day into a play day.

A rabbit finds a pine cone and invites woodland pals to play toss, but when one of them warns, “It’s going to RAIN,” the rabbit’s playmates scatter, leaving their friend behind to announce, “I like rain.” Wondering “What’s wrong with rain,” the rabbit watches drops drip. As the drip, drip increases, the bunny, too, adopts an anti-rain attitude and takes shelter. Flopping about inside, the bored rabbit spies a bird exuberantly splashing outside in a puddle. Donning rain gear, the rabbit heads out to join the bird. Reaffirming, “I like rain,” the rabbit invites the others to return for rain play. The minimalist, hand-lettered text relies on repetition of the onomatopoeic words “drip,” “drop,” “splish,” and “splash” to convey weather-related mood swings. Hilariously, Dillard evokes the pouring rain with vertical repetitions of “d r i p” covering the page. Simple, gently humorous illustrations focus on the rabbit playing outdoors, initially sporting a red-and-white–striped T-shirt and later protected by spiffy red galoshes, raincoat, and hat. The rabbit’s metamorphosis from rain lover to rain hater and back to rain lover spins out visually in a mix of close-up and aerial views against uncluttered forest backgrounds. Sprightly closing scenes of anthropomorphic critters cavorting in their colorful rain gear end playtime on a high note.

Attitude makes all the difference in this amusing, cheery, weather-driven tale.