Benjamin's Thunderstorm

Written by Melanie Florence

Illustrated by Hawlii Pichette

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-0320-3

23 pp.

Ages 3-7

September 2023

 

Kids often love the rain, putting on rubber boots, splashing in puddles, and more. But Benjamin has a special connection to many elements of a storm that make thunderstorms all the more special for him.

From Benjamin's Thunderstorm, written by Melanie Florence, illustrated by Hawlii Pichette

For Benjamin, the sound of thunder, which resonated like the beating of his grandfather's drum, was the sound of the thunderbirds, piyêsiwak, beating their wings. Though Benjamin also loved the puddles, kâ-wâyipêyâsiki, and the rainbows, pîsimoyâpiya, with all their colours, he loved the beat of the thunder, the same that he experienced as a powwow dancer. And even when he gets called inside by his mother–there is lightning as well as thunder–he finds a creative way to reconnect with that outside storm.

From Benjamin's Thunderstorm, written by Melanie Florence, illustrated by Hawlii Pichette

Melanie Florence may be known for her profound stories based in experiences of Indigenous Peoples, most notably her award-winning picture books Stolen Words (2017) and Missing Nimâmâ (2015), but she takes a more whimsical approach in Benjamin's Thunderstorm. She still embeds her story in Cree language by peppering the story with Cree words for weather events and colours and offers a "Pronunciation Guide" from Dr. Arok Wolvengrey of First Nations University of Canada. But Melanie Florence's story is more about a child enjoying the sensory experience of a thunderstorm, and most notably for the cultural connections he has because of it. 

Hawlii Pichette, a Mushkego Cree urban mixed-blood artist, balances her illustrations with both the playfulness of the story and a depth of culture. The story is one of a child at play and Hawlii Pichette gives us that high spiritedness as Benjamin splashes and dances and delights in the rain. Moreover, Hawlii Pichette's Woodland style of art speaks to her own background, and that of Melanie Florence and Benjamin, giving us landscapes of heavily outlined trees and structures while her lines speak to movement and life. 

The next time there's a rainstorm Benjamin will undoubtedly be revelling in the textures of that weather event, playing outside when safe and inside when not, and appreciating it all the more for the connection he makes with his culture and his family.

From Benjamin's Thunderstorm, written by Melanie Florence, illustrated by Hawlii Pichette