Waiting Out the Storm

Talk about beautiful.  This is a book of two voices:  the voice of the child, often called Buttercup, who is asking for reassurance as a storm begins to stir up.  The second voice is that of the mother who calmly, warmly responds to each concern that all is well and even wonderful.  There is a feeling in this book that nature is playful and nurturing rather than scary and threatening.  "It's too loud!  I'm afraid!" comes the child's fear.  "Oh, it's only a sound. Thunder stops. Thunder tumbles and bumbles around."  The illustrations are perfectly gentle as we watch the storm from enough distance but come up close to the magic of chipmunks tucked in their burrows and mallard ducks paddling in the stream through the raindrops.  This is truly a comforting voice.  As the illustrator says in her note, "I'm inspired and held in awe by how this graceful story takes on fear, love, and compassion all in a simply and familiar situation."  Wonderful!