Saturday, August 29, 2015

Ten Years Ago: Hurricane Katrina

If you've watched or read any type of media recently, you're probably aware that August 29th is the 10th anniversary of the day Hurricane Katrina made landfall.  I didn't want the day to pass without letting you know about some truly excellent books for children and teens about this historic hurricane: 





Another Kind of Hurricane  is a moving, sensitive, and ultimately hopeful book about two very different young boys who are affected by Hurricane Katrina's wrath (Henry lives in Vermont; Zavion lives in New Orleans) and form a deeply personal bond based on their shared experiences of grief and loss. This is Tamara Ellis Smith's debut novel, and I can't wait to see what she creates next. 






Don Brown's  The Great American Dust Bowl is an intensely gripping and powerful narrative in graphic novel format about the Dust Bowl, so it was no surprise that  Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans is equally as compelling. (I say graphic novel, but these are straight nonfiction books). Written and drawn for YA audiences, this is an honest and intimate examination of the hurricane, as well as the aftermath. 







Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, And Survival  is based on the true story of a cat and a dog, left behind by their owners (many pet owners were forced to leave their pets behind because many hotels, shelters, and authorities refused to let pets accompany their owners; laws were changed in the aftermath of Katrina in order to prevent massive amounts of animals left behind in the wake of evacuations and rescues). This is a remarkable and unforgettable story about friendship and survival.


If you are interested in adult nonfiction books about Hurricane Katrina, please see my review of
Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital from November 2013.

Next week, I'll have something much more cheerful to discuss: Fall 2015 books!

Jennifer Schultz, Youth Services Librarian, Fauquier County Public Library 


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