Drizzle

Gr 4—6—On Polly Peabody's family farm, the extraordinary is the norm and the rhubarb tastes like chocolate. The 11-year-old can communicate with some of the plants and huge insects, although she sometimes can't understand what they say. Diamonds have sprouted from the ground, and there is a lake in which no one can drown. Most important, in an otherwise parched Midwestern area, it rains on the farm every Monday at precisely one o'clock. Suddenly the rains stop and everything begins to die, and Polly's beloved home must be sold. When her brother becomes desperately ill, Polly believes that the rain and his health are cosmically connected. The plants and insects become her allies as she battles against time to solve the mystery of the rain, learn the magic of the farm, and keep her family home. Kathleen Van Cleve drew upon her childhood on a farm to create this wonderfully imaginative, yet believable tale (Dial, 2010) of a young girl who is almost overwhelmed by bullies, a fear of insects, her impulsive personality, and the threat of losing everything. Although she feels out of place among her classmates and often doubts her own abilities, Polly finds the courage and resourcefulness to decipher the farm's secrets and to restore balance to the farm and her family with the help of some unusual friends, Ralph Waldo Emerson's Self-Reliance, some grandmotherly advice, and an exceptional science teacher. Maria Cabezas's expressive narration aptly delivers Polly's thoughts and emotions. She varies her tone just enough to make the other characters' dialogue unique, but Polly's voice is appropriately the strongest. A satisfying coming-of-age tale with an environmental message.—MaryAnn Karre, Horace Mann Elementary School, Binghamton, NY