Overall the book was okay. I don't think that I would use it in my classroom but it does make weather that students can't imagine affecting them, such as a hurricane, and make it more understandable. In the story there is a family whole spends time waiting out a hurricane in their home together. The family is safe however the two boys get to see some of the aftermath in their city. They help other members of their community with the aftermath of the hurricane. Overall this book did a realistic job talking about how a family might feel and what might happen to a town in the aftermath. However there was not a lot of information in the book so I would not use it in the classroom for instruction. ( )

This book is about a boy who is out looking for his cat when a hurricane approaches. The boy and his brother manage to get their cat inside before it gets too strong, though. The book talks about what a hurricane looks like and sounds like, and it also gives real examples of things that can happen during a hurricane, such as power outages, high winds, and heavy rains. The thing I like about this book is that it shows the family responding calmly to the situation. This is a book that I would use to teach about hurricanes whether I lived in an area where they were common or not. It is a good text for finding information about getting through a hurricane. I do think that it would be especially helpful to use to talk to a class in an area where hurricanes are more likely. One thing that I don’t like as much about the book is that, despite being a narrative about hurricanes, the story is a bit dry. ( )

A hurricane brings down a tree outside two brothers' home and they have a great time playing in the downed tree. But when it must be chopped up and taken away, the fun ends. Wonderful illustrations make it fun to read. Teaches the power of imagination. ( )

a small child is home during a hurricane and works towards understanding and not being afraid of hurricanes
1 book/CD

I enjoyed this book for many reasons. The writing was very engaging and descriptive. It was engaging because the plot line spoke to me. The children in the story are witnessing a hurricane happen outside, and are very curious about what will happen to the world around them. The author was very descriptive and it made it easy to picture was going on in the story. It brought me back to all the times a hurricane hit my homeland when I was a child. For example ‘David listened to the walls of the house creaking in the wind. ‘If it’s like this now, what is it going to be like when the hurricane hits?’ Suddenly the lights went out.” Here I could picture exactly what was going on. Later on in the story the children describe the damage done as a jungle. They took advantage of this to play and use their creativity in the damage. I also enjoyed how they took something so negative into something positive. For instance, “’Look at those big limbs and branches! It’s like a jungle to play safari in before.” David didn’t wait for an answer. He was already climbing the fallen tree. David fearlessly led the expedition into the very hear of the jungle.” The illustrations also helped to interpret the characters imaginations.The concept of this story is to make something beautiful out of something damaged, ( )