Reviewed with Marion Bauer's Rain .PreS-Gr. 1. Two bright paperbacks in the Ready-to-Read series work well together to present some basic facts about weather for beginning readers. Clouds introduces three kinds of clouds--cirrus, stratus, and cumulus--and explains how they form and what they do for humans (They give us shade . . .They send our water back to us). Rain describes how the drops of water in the clouds grow larger and heavier until they fall, bringing relief from heat, and then explains how water goes up to gather in the clouds again. Bauer's text is very simple, just one or two sentences on each double-page spread, and Wallace's line-and-watercolor illustrations show preschoolers outside in the rain and the sun. Both books end with a list of facts for adults and kids to talk about together.

Two books for very new readers explore various types of clouds and provide an elementary review of the water cycle. The hazy illustrations, which look like watercolors, are unsuitable to the discussion of clouds, where more detailed images could help extend the rudimentary text. The oversimplification of difficult concepts results in a few misleading statements.

K-Gr 2-Two simple science books for beginning readers. The first title introduces the different types of clouds (cirrus, stratus, and cumulus) by stating their defining characteristics. In Rain, a day goes from hot to rainy to clear again, but the scientific concept is not as clearly expressed. Elucidating the cyclical nature of the water cycle without using the word "evaporation" is a daunting challenge. Stating that a puddle "goes into the sky" is not an adequate explanation. Both volumes are illustrated with appealing one- and two-page paintings that show children interacting with their environment and end with a page of additional facts. These books are aimed at less advanced readers than either the "Let's-Read-and-Find-Out-Science" series (HarperCollins) or the "Rookie Read-about Science" series (Children's). Clouds provides brief, but adequate coverage of its topic; Rain is too vague and general to be useful.-Lisa Smith, Lindenhurst Memorial Library, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.