Small, Sparkling Raindrop

A fact-filled picture book about the water cycle (ages 4-8)

Mary Auld author Lou Baker-Smith illustrator Dr Nicholas Souter editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Mama Makes Books

Publishing:19th Nov '26

£7.99

This title is due to be published on 19th November, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

This paperback is available in another edition too:

Small, Sparkling Raindrop cover

A beautifully illustrated educational picture book about the water cycle for children aged 4 to 8.

Perfect for curious young readers, Small, Sparkling Raindrop follows a tiny raindrop as it travels through the water cycle, showing how water shapes our planet and supports all life on Earth.

Ideal for children who:

  • Love discovering how the world works
  • Are fascinated by nature and wildlife
  • Enjoy stories packed with real science and fascinating facts

Designed to grow with your child, the engaging story is easy for developing readers to enjoy, while fact-filled captions offer extra learning for more confident readers.

Children will also discover:

  • The importance of rivers and wetlands for people and wildlife
  • The mighty Mekong River and its remarkable biodiversity
  • Why endangered animals, including the Irrawaddy dolphin, need clean, healthy rivers to survive

Packed with hands-on learning, the book includes:

  • Primary science topics that align with the National Curriculum (KS1)
  • A map of the world's major rivers
  • A fun I-Spy activity
  • Instructions for making a simple water filter
  • Access to free online activities


Part of the award-winning Start Small, Think Big series, each book introduces a different life cycle, habitat and ecosystem through engaging storytelling and stunning illustrations. Collect the series to build a life cycle library for your home or school library:

  • Small, Sparkling Raindrop (Wetlands & the Water Cycle, Southeast Asia)
  • Small, Speckled Egg (Polar regions and the life cycle of birds)
  • Little, Brown Nut (Amazon rainforest and the life cycle of a trees)
  • Tiny, Floating Coral (Great Barrier Reef and the life cycle of coral)
  • Fluffy, Flying Seed (Meadowlands and the life cycle of a dandelion)
  • Small, Shiny Dung Beetle (African Savannah and the life cycle of an insect)

Printed on FSC-certified paper from responsibly managed forests.

This book is a fantastic way to immerse yourself in the water cycle. We read the larger text on each page as a story, whilst smaller text gives more factual information to support more in-depth learning. The illustrations are beautiful and we loved the huge fold out at the end which encouraged us to go back through the book to find each of the animals, as well as giving an overview of the water cycle.

* @milo_and_gigis_bookshelf *

A really fun way to introduce early science to your littlest readers.

* @posies_book_club *

The wonderful illustrations, labelled drawings and maps make this a fun, educational read that is full of facts. We loved the giant fold out page at the end. A great one to link with the curriculum.

* @emma.life.in.eyfs *

The balance between text and imagery makes this an ideal resource for primary-aged children, particularly those in Key Stage 2 studying the water cycle. Children have shown great interest in this book, eagerly sharing the facts they’ve learned, which highlights its effectiveness as an educational tool.

* Books for Topi

ISBN: 9781916780224

Dimensions: 230mm x 230mm x 4mm

Weight: 164g

32 pages