It's Raining Pups and Dogs!

by Jeanne Prevost (Contributor), Amelia Hansen (Illustrations)

Lauren is angry with her father for having their dog Scout spayed, dashing her hopes of having the fun of raising puppies. To show Lauren why they made the decision not to breed Scout, Lauren's dad takes her to visit a large animal shelter. Seeing the hundreds of dogs waiting for rescue, many with little hope of finding a home, Lauren comes to understand why they spayed there are too many dogs and too few homes for them. The realistic, captivating art features shelter dogs. The final page of the book offers information for parents and other adults about pet overpopulation and the importance of spaying and neutering. Jeanne Prevost 's previous title, It's Raining Cats—and Cats! won the ASPCA Henry Bergh Award for Best Children's Picture Book and a Humane Society of the US Youth KIND Award. Prevost is an elementary school teacher who has worked as a medical assistant for a veterinary hospital. Amelia Hansen is the illustrator of award-winning the Gryphon Press titles It's Raining Cats—and Cats!, Are You Ready for Me?, and At the Dog Park with Sam and Lucy , as well as nineteen other books.

Genres: Picture Books, Dogs

24 pages, Hardcover

First published May 14, 2013

About the author

Jeanne Prevost grew up in the city of Fall River Massachusetts with one younger brother and six younger sisters. She is the mother of three grown children. Jeanne writes picture books for children ages four to twelve. She also teaches third grade.

Jeanne Prevost’s most recently published picture book, It’s Raining Pups and Dogs!, features heart-wrenching illustrations by Amelia Hansen. It presents a young girl, Lauren, who learns why it’s important to have her dog Scout spayed.

Previously, Jeanne wrote the first book ever that addresses the topic of pet overpopulation. Wonderfully illustrated by Amelia Hansen, It's Raining Cats -- and Cats! takes a humorous approach to the problem. The ASPCA chose It’s Raining Cats...and Cats! as the winner of the HENRY BERGH CHILDREN'S BOOK AWARD in 2009.

The river speaks in Jeanne’s book entitled Quequechan: Forgotten River. This title gives voice to a river that wants to be loved.

Currently, Jeanne has six manuscripts in the polishing and submission stage:
The Scoop...By Dirt gives this ordinary, ubiquitous material a funny and true voice.
Let's Go Eat Some Grass! is a story about where food comes from.
Tan's Tale tells the ancient Chinese legend about the origin of tangrams in a new and original way.
In When Christmas Wasn't Ready, Saint Nick’s elves must choose between helping an injured reindeer or finishing the toys in time for Christmas.
George the Geometry Guy introduces the concept of shapes to develop the idea that math is everywhere.

For the past year, Jeanne has been putting in writing another mother’s journey through the trials of raising a son with a mental disorder. This yet-to-be-published biography offers a gripping account of a mother who doesn’t know where to turn, until she turns to herself.

Jeanne lives in an old neighborhood, in an old house surrounded by trees and flowers. She loves gardening, hiking and backpacking, swimming, boating, and bicycle riding. Her motto is: Give more than you take; do more than you need to; be kinder than you have to.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, a great combination of tender story and education about overpopulation of dogs. Another book that I appreciate for featuring an African American girl as protagonist, I'm finding there are actually a lot of these books available if you search past the Tinkerbell and Fancy Nancy stuff (they have their place, too, but why are they always in front??) The girl expresses herself very well, and her Dad does a great job of showing her the realities of dog populations without being heavy handed and letting her reach her own conclusion. The art is drawn with realistic faces and then a kind of muted watercolor background that I thought worked well for focusing on the story. Information for parents is included on the last page.

[Maeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Laura has always wanted her dog, Scout, to have puppies...so she is furious when her father and mother have Scout spayed. To help her understand the importance of spaying and neutering pets, her father takes her to the local animal shelter, where she sees all the animals that needs homes. In the end, Laura agrees with the decision her parents made, and promises to always care for her Scout.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sister book to It's Raining Cats--and Cats!. Like the previous book, Dogs has a child wondering why the family pet has been spayed, because she would like to have a cute litter to play with.

Where Cats took a humorous route in making its point, showing a house besieged by an ever-growing horde of cats and kittens, Dogs is a serious book. The newer book has the father taking his child to a filled-to-capacity animal shelter and explaining that there are not enough homes for every dog. After spending a day volunteering with the dogs at the shelter, the young girl agrees that spaying the family pet is the right thing to do.

I didn't enjoy Dogs quite as much as Cats, because where the latter was a giggle-inducing read-aloud, the former is more heavy-handed and didactic, which may turn off some readers. That said, the illustrations are beautiful and the message comes through loud and clear.

[Children's Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A girl is unhappy that her own dog has been spayed until she and her dad visit an animal shelter, and the girl learns of all the homeless pets who are waiting for adoption who might miss their chances if her dog's puppies were adopted by her friends. She offers to help out at the shelter once a week.
Informational content: The last page gives info about animal adoption & supporting spaying and neutering. Also includes a short list of other sources of information.