Tornado

by Sharon Jennings

Overview

Cam must battle extreme weather conditions to find his brother, as his already fragile family is being torn apart by secrets.

When a distant storm knocks out the power at his high school, Cam and his friends head out for burgers. On their way back to pick up Cam's little brother, Peter, at the bus stop, they are caught up in the middle of a deadly tornado. Cam manages to survive and makes his way home only to discover that his house has been destroyed and his parents are locked in an argument that ends in a startling revelation. And Peter is still missing.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781459827288
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	01/19/2021
Series:	Orca Soundings Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	112
Lexile:	HL370L (what's this?)
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Sharon Jennings is the award-winning author of over 70 books for young people, including The Bye-Bye Pie, winner of the Blue Spruce Award (Durham), and Home Free, which was a finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award and theTD Canadian Children’s Literature Award. Sharon teaches writing, works as a freelance editor and manuscript reviewer, and gives workshops and speeches across the country. She is also the president of CANSCAIP. She lives in Toronto.

Editorial Reviews

Sharon Jennings captures her audience’s attention from the first page in this high-interest novel that is accessible for older students of all reading abilities. The novel lends itself well to discussions about energy and physics in the Science curriculum.”

BC Books for Schools

The book reads like a snapshot in time, but the author does well in building suspense and engagement with the reader. Recommended.

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Whether for hooking reluctant readers or offering a quick, gripping tale for independent reading, this entry in the high-interest “Orca Soundings” series is a thrilling romp.

School Library Journal (SLJ)

Full of action and brief enough to entice even the most unwilling readers.

Kirkus Reviews

2020-10-27
After school unexpectedly lets out early due to a power outage, 16-year-old Cam heads to a burger place with his friends.

He knows he has to be back in time to meet his 6-year-old brother, Peter, off the bus, never expecting that a powerful tornado will touch down, making that impossible. The tornado flips the car he’s in, killing outright two of his pals and leaving the third, Chrissy, seriously injured. Stunned and hurt himself, Cam is taken back to town by a truck driver, abandoning Chrissy to try to find his brother. Learning that the bus dropped him off before the tornado struck, Cam stops at his nearly destroyed home, where he lies to his parents about where he’s been. After he’s caught in the lie, his furious dad lashes out angrily while his alcoholic mother seems unable to understand the full situation. Struggling with guilt, grief, and rejection, Cam desperately searches for Peter and then has to protect him from vicious looters. The story wraps up quickly, providing a perhaps improbable feel-good ending. Presented in simple text with ample white space, this fast-paced, suspenseful tale is perfect for reluctant readers. Although exposition is necessarily limited, Cam’s angst over leaving Chrissy behind and missing his brother is heartfelt and fully believable. Main characters seem to be White by default; diversity in secondary characters is cued by surname.

Full of action and brief enough to entice even the most unwilling readers. (Fiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews