- Picture Books
- Ages 3–7
- Fables
Rain Before Rainbows
A lyrical reassurance book about moving through hard times towards light, hope and companionship. David Litchfield's glowing illustrations make it especially giftable and emotionally comforting.
- Best for3–7
- FormatPicture
- Length32 pp
- Read aloud~6 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Lyrical
- Repetitive
- Literary
Tone
- Gentle
- Inspirational
- Heartwarming
- Bittersweet
- Warm
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
A girl and a fox travel through rain, darkness, mountains and uncertainty towards brighter skies. Smriti Halls' text is spare and lyrical, built around the idea that difficult moments come before better ones: rain before rainbows, clouds before sun, storms before calm. David Litchfield's illustrations turn that emotional journey into a richly coloured landscape of shadows, light and companionship. The result is less a conventional plot than a poetic reassurance story, useful for children facing worry, change or low confidence. It does not name a specific problem, which makes it flexible: it can sit beside anxiety, grief, moving house, illness in the family or simply a hard day. The tone is soothing and hopeful without pretending that difficult feelings disappear instantly, making it a strong comfort read for sensitive children.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 3–7
- Read aloud · 3–8
- Independent · 6–9
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Workable
Read-aloud quality
Excellent
Works well for
- Reading aloud
- Bedtime
- Reading together
- Gift-buying
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
5 / 5 · Bedtime-friendly
Sensitive-child
5 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Reassuring read
- Sensitive children
- Beautiful illustrations
- Hopeful picture book
- Lyrical read aloud
Avoid if
- Wants fast gags
- Wants literal plot
- Prefers high action
Particularly good for children who are…
- Anxiety and worry
- Low self esteem
- Bereavement
- Illness in family
- Moving house
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A gentle, hopeful read-aloud about coming through dark times — a lovely wellbeing text for talking about resilience, hope and hard feelings.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific delight is the fox companion — a girl crossing rain and darkness and mountains with a fox beside her, the rainbow not arriving early but eventually arriving, the journey through the weather the whole point. The Halls / Litchfield picture book for any hard moment.
- Friendship and belonging
- Surviving danger
- Making a difference
Why parents love it
The Smriti Halls / David Litchfield reassurance picture book — spare lyrical text and Litchfield's glowing illustration, deliberately unspecific about the difficulty so it can sit beside grief / illness / anxiety / change. Soothing without pretending hard feelings disappear instantly.
- Beautiful illustrations
- Bedtime appropriate
- Conversation starter
- Great writing
About the creators
About the creators.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
Books that share themes and topics with this one.
Where you’ll find it
On these reading lists.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
- Bookshop.org ↗
- Waterstones ↗
- Amazon UK ↗
- Hive ↗
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