Pamela Paul
A model of understated storytelling, A Storm Called Katrina wisely steers clear of histrionics or political commentary yet remains true to its disturbing subject. The illustrations are equally muted…Children who read [this] story will be the wiser for it…With an author's note, photographs and a list of resources for children, this moving introduction to Hurricane Katrina imparts its lessons with a restraint that powerfully increases their gravity.
—The New York Times
From the Publisher
★ "A heartrending story of a New Orleans family's experience through Hurricane Katrina. . . Simple, affecting prose and intricate, inspired paintings make this one worth sharing for sure." —Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
"This remarkable homage to New Orleans tells of Louis Daniel, named for Armstrong, who leaves his flooded home with his parents and his cornet. . . The oil-on-board paintings of shimmering water and unfocused crowds capture contradictions; both harsh reality and otherworldliness; both the enormity and the intimacy of the event, somehow managing to leave out the horror. Uhlberg's prose does the same" —School Library Journal
★ "Bootman's dramatic oil paintings and the boy's first-person narration provide realistic immediacy as the boy's family makes its way through their flooded neighborhood on "a piece of someone's porch that was floating by." Readers are in for a deeply personal and sometimes uncomfortable look at a disaster whose ramifications are still being felt" —Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
★ "The juxtaposition of the understated text and muscular artwork works well. . . A memorable addition to the growing number of books about Hurricane Katrina, this offering personalizes a national tragedy" —Booklist, Starred Review
JUNE 2012 - AudioFile
Brandon Gill’s beautiful voice is both comforting and anxious as the waters begin to rise in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Louis Daniel finds that Mama’s soft, loving tone no longer embarrasses him as the family wades through the flooded streets of the city. Gill’s slow yet lively delivery allows enough time and space for listeners to imagine the story or peruse the pictures. Yet he keeps the narrative flowing. Scenes that show the importance of music and family emotionally anchor the story. Appropriately ambiguous details and a hopeful conclusion give young listeners a sense of the tragedy without overwhelming them. The recording ends with an author’s note. A.M.P. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
