The fluid, rhyming text offers some basic facts about thunderstorms; the well-researched back matter presents a more detailed account . . . McKay's illustrations beautifully capture both the changing weather phenomena and the children's reactions. An informative read-aloud choice for home or classroom.

Booklist, starred review

Science collides with poetry in Zap! Clap! Boom!: The Story of a Thunderstorm, in which Laura Purdie Salas's pit-a-pat rhymes match the tempo of a rain shower, and Elly MacKay's art rivals the drama of a real atmospheric disturbance.

Shelf Awareness

With eye-catching art and lines that roll off the tongue, this book would be well-suited to raucous but stealthily informative science-based story hour.

BCCB

MacKay's intricate layered-paper illustrations capture the way the storm touches every part of the island . . . Salas's onomatopoeic verse conveys both the ferocity of a thunderstorm and the wonder it can inspire; it begs to be read aloud.

The Horn Book

The book is a perfect read-aloud . . . A lovely, vocabulary-stretching, story-hour gift for a cozy day.

School Library Journal

The buildup and arrival of a wild thunderstorm offers both eye-widening drama and lessons in atmospheric phenomena . . . A crashing success.

Kirkus Reviews