Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jul 2015
336 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
In this stunning debut novel for younger readers, two very different characters—a black boy who loses his home in Hurricane Katrina and a white boy in Vermont who loses his best friend in a tragic accident—come together to find healing.
A hurricane, a tragic death, two boys, one marble. How they intertwine is at the heart of this beautiful, poignant book. When ten-year-old Zavion loses his home in Hurricane Katrina, he and his father are forced to flee to Baton Rouge. And when Henry, a ten-year-old boy in northern Vermont, tragically loses his best friend, Wayne, he flees to ravaged New Orleans to help with hurricane relief efforts—and to search for a marble that was in the pocket of a pair of jeans donated to the Red Cross.
Rich with imagery and crackling with hope, this is the unforgettable story of how lives connect in unexpected, even magical, ways.
A Note from BookBrowse, July 2015
We are very excited about the publication of Another Kind of Hurricane because it is written by one of our own. Full-time author Tamara Smith is also part-time editor for BookBrowse. Her middle-grade novel has already been generating all kinds of pre-publication buzz with a starred review from Kirkus and additional praise from Publisher's Weekly. Knowing Tam, we know this can't happen to a better person. Although we are longing to shout about Another Kind of Hurricane from every rooftop, we won't be reviewing it on BookBrowse because it would be impossible for us to write an unbiased review.
Reviews
"Smith takes her time showing the struggle and desperation New Orleans citizens experienced. Through Zavion, we learn how hunger may cause people to steal and how being turned away from safety at gunpoint can cover them with a veil of hopelessness. Even so, Another Kind of Hurricane is not dependent on Hurricane Katrina to steer the story. Grief is the driving force." - New York Times
"Elegant prose and emotional authenticity will make this title sing not only for those who have experienced tragedies, but for everyone who knows the magic that only true friendship can foster." - Kirkus Reviews starred review
"Smith's simple and lyrical prose combines the event-based realism of Lauren Tarshis's I Survived series, the heartwarming emotion of Wonder by R.J. Palacio, and the plot complexity of Lisa Graff's A Tangle of Knots into a story about grief, healing, and friendship in spite of superficial differences. It's a perfect choice for those middle-grade readers who are looking to be moved and uplifted, and I'll definitely be suggesting it to elementary and middle-school librarians as well!" - Rachel Hochberg, Publishers Weekly Galley Talk
"In Smith's poetic hands, this poignant story barrels across the pages and into the reader's heart, reminding us that magic can arise from the deepest tragedy." - Kathi Appelt, Newbery Honor Award winner and two-time National Book Award Finalist
"Tamara Ellis Smith's first novel sweeps readers up in a tale imbued with magical realism, a definitive mix of gritty realism and magic that allows the possibility for life-affirming choices." - BookPage
This information about Another Kind of Hurricane was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Tamara Ellis Smith earned her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in Richmond, Vermont, with her family. Another Kind of Hurricane (July 2015) is her first novel.
Visit her website for more about Another Kind of Hurricane, including a moving essay explaining the story behind the story.
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