Hurricane

by John Rocco

Overview

A gorgeously-illustrated picture book about the power of community from Caldecott-Honoree John Rocco  

That night the wind roars and rumbles, 
like the sound of a thousand waves 
pounding the shoreline. 
 
A young boy’s favorite place in the world is the old, splintery neighborhood dock. At this dock the boy can swim, fish, or watch minnows dart between the rocks. But a hurricane is coming…and its violent winds and rain carry with it anything that can float.
                                                                                                 
Caldecott Honoree John Rocco shows the power of community and the beauty of rebuilding after adversity in this dramatically illustrated follow-up to Blizzard and Blackout.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780759554931
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	09/28/2021
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	144,283
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 11.20(h) x 1.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

John Rocco is a New York Times Bestselling author and illustrator of many acclaimed books for children, including Wolf! Wolf!, winner of the Borders Original Voices Award for best picture book; Moonpowder; Blizzard; and Blackout, a winner of the Caldecott Honor. Rocco also illustrated Whoopi Goldberg's Aliceand the covers for Rick Riordan's internationally bestselling series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Kane Chronicles, The Heroes of Olympus and Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard. He also was the illustrator for both #1 New York Times Bestsellers Percy Jackson's Greek Gods and Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes. Most recently, Rocco’s first book of nonfiction, How We Got To The Moon, was longlisted for the National Book Award. 

Editorial Reviews

08/23/2021

The light-skinned child who narrates this follow-up to Blizzard and Blackout lives near a river and likes to fish off a rickety dock. When a hurricane is forecast, “today feels different. The air is still, and the sound of hammering echoes down the street.” As the adults prepare grimly, boarding up windows, the child stays upbeat: “I tell them that the best fishing comes right after a big storm.” But the hurricane causes significant loss—including to the beloved dock. Naturalistic spreads in Rocco’s signature style capture the peace of the child’s world and the drama of the hurricane’s arrival and aftermath. The story’s latter half becomes an absorbing maker tale as the neighborhood addresses the damage and puts things to rights. End pages detail how hurricanes form, how their strength is measured, and the components of a dock. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

&"Mixed-media and digital artwork in saturated color intensifies both the building storm and the comity of the community."—Booklist, starred review

"This is exactly told, down-to-earth story about folks coming together in troubled times will evoke readers’ empathy. The excellent, realistic illustrations, rendered in pencil and watercolors, enhance the already accessible, satisfying reading experience."—Kirkus

"Naturalistic spreads in Rocco’s signature style capture the peace of the child’s world and the drama of the hurricane’s arrival and aftermath."—Publisher Weekly

*"Rocco’s dramatic, naturalistic digitally colored watercolor illustrations, a mix of panels, single pages, and spreads, show the impending storm approaching and the community’s preparations of boarding up houses and taping windows….As in the author’s Blizzard, it is the human response to a weather event that informs this strikingly illustrated, straightforwardly told book’s theme."
 —Horn Book, starred review

From the Publisher

2021-07-14
Adversity brings out the best in people.

A young boy, perhaps the author/illustrator’s younger self, witnesses this principle firsthand—and is himself a testament to it—when a hurricane wreaks havoc. Readers meet the young narrator, who describes his “favorite place in the world” as the neighborhood dock, overlooking the nearby river, where he swims and fishes. Returning home one day, he sees his dad reinforcing their house’s windows because a hurricane’s approaching. The boy worries: What will happen to his dock? The storm’s destructive fury is dramatically portrayed both textually and visually, allowing readers to share his concern. The boy’s fears are confirmed next morning when he observes the storm’s damage to his street: Indeed, the dock has been destroyed. Unfortunately, neighbors can’t help immediately, as they’re occupied with their own home repairs; nevertheless, the boy lends them a helping hand. Afterward, with pluck, ingenuity, and every resource available, the kid attempts dock repair himself…until all his neighbors, having completed their own work and been impressed by the boy’s initiative, pitch in with new supplies and sturdily fix up “our dock.” This is exactly told, down-to-earth story about folks coming together in troubled times will evoke readers’ empathy. The excellent, realistic illustrations, rendered in pencil and watercolors, enhance the already accessible, satisfying reading experience. The narrator and dad present White; neighbors are somewhat diverse. Front endpapers provide facts about how hurricanes develop. Rear endpapers include a replica of a charming note written by 6-year-old Rocco to his parents about a fishing trip and a labeled diagram featuring the parts of a dock. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Both informative and emotionally gratifying. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews