Many years ago before the white settlers arrived in red rock country, there lived a skilled Navajo weaver named Mockingbird Song who was known far and wide for her beautiful blankets. Mockingbird Song's granddaughter, called Flower After the Rain, was learning from her grandmother the intricacies of weaving. As they worked at their looms, Mockingbird Song would tell her granddaughter stories of the great chiefs from the north who would someday barter for her blankets. Flower longed to meet one of these chiefs and would often look with eager andcipation toward the distant horizon.

One day, a great chief and his braves arrived at grandmother's home. After he left. Flower learned that the chief had asked that she weave a blanket just for him. Overcome with self-doubt, she is comforted by Mockingbird Song. "Trust yourself, child, and always ask Great Spirit to guide you". The story of how Flower After the Rain confronts her fears and weaves her first chief's blanket while helping her beloved grandmother offers insight into the values of the Navajo people and gives today's children the means of confronting their own self-doubt.

Michael Chanin's moving story and Kim Howard's joyful paintings combine to introduce children to a largely unknown piece of the history of the American frontier. It is against this historic background that Chanin has woven a tale of love and compassion, giving and receiving.A