Lila and the Secret of Rain by David Conway & Jude Daly

Lila and the Secret of Rain by David Conway & Jude Daly

Conway, David, and Jude Daly. Lila and the Secret of Rain. London: Frances Lincoln, 2007.

Genre: Folktale

Lexile:

This book is a Kenyan folktale about the rain and how Lila was able to make it rain during the dry season because, “Without water there can be no life” (Conway). It is too hot to do anything- milk the cow, go to the field, or even gather firewood. Lila learns from her grandfather the secret of rain he learned from another boy.

This book embodies a folktale because of several different factors. The reader is brought quickly into the action of the story by the first few sentences. The characters in the folktale are “flat”- they are kept to a minimal description. The story starts with a typical beginning, not once upon a time but rather, “For weeks and weeks...” Lastly, the folktale reflects values/universal truths at that time.

This literature is also quality literature because of its theme, illustrations, and understanding and respect of the culture it is portraying. The illustrations are representative of the plot. When the rain doesn’t come and it is a sad time the colors in the illustration are dark and gloomy. You can also see the theme in the illustrations. The illustrators and authors have split apart the pages to show more than on theme or idea on each page. The folktale is representative of the culture and portrays in a meaningful way for children to understand.

The setting is important because the moral of the folktale takes place in of dryness and for students to picture the desert makes the story. The setting helps the reader to connect to the story so the strong sense of setting helps readers to be in Kenya with Lila. The setting also reflects an antagonist (person against nature conflict).

Mini-Lesson: After reading this book students could remember a folktale true to their lives and write about it. Or students could create their own folktales from their experiences.

Readability: This book is appropriate for children ­­preschool and up. This book could be used as a read aloud to younger children when learning about folktales, but also independently in more mature readers.