A Storm Called Katrina

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A Storm Called Katrina

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Overview

School Library Journal calls this moving tale by Myron Uhlberg a “remarkable homage to New Orleans.” A Storm Called Katrina follows Louis Daniel, a 10-year-old boy from New Orleans' Ninth Ward who loves to play the horn just like his idol, Louis Armstrong. The morning after the devastating hurricane rips through his neighborhood, Louis-with his beloved cornet in tow-must brave the rising flood waters and seek shelter with his family at the Superdome.
“Children who read [Louis'] story will be the wiser for it ...”-New York Times

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Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

The pair behind Dad, Jackie, and Me turn their attention to the harrowing events of Hurricane Katrina as seen through the eyes of a fictional child. Ten-year-old Louis Daniel is African-American and a horn player like his idol, Louis Armstrong. He goes to bed during a fierce storm and awakens to encroaching water. 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." Uhlberg hints at the death toll: "y broom hit a pile of clothes. Mama covered my eyes. ‘Don't look, Baby,' she said. But I couldn't help looking." The dark-hued, realistic illustrations create a somber mood that refuses to lift even when the family finally reaches the Superdome. The boy's shiny cornet, saved from floodwaters, figures prominently in the family's experience at the chaotic stadium, giving comfort and continuity. Readers are in for a deeply personal and sometimes uncomfortable look at a disaster whose ramifications are still being felt. The book concludes with author notes and several photographs. Ages 7–11. (Aug.)

Children's Literature - Barbara L. Talcroft

Though they are from California and Brooklyn, author and illustrator met at a conference in New Orleans in 2006 and decided to collaborate on a project about Katrina. The story focuses on ten-year-old Louis Daniel and his parents, who are waiting anxiously for the wild storm to abate. When it does, Daddy discovers water on the doorstep and decides they have to leave immediately. Louis is not about to go without his beloved brass cornet—he hopes one day to play like his idol, Louis Daniel Armstrong. Outside they hear that the levee has broken and everyone's heading south. Their journey towards the Superdome, where there may be refuge, is terrifying, as Daddy puts Louis and his mother on a wooden bit of porch and pushes them through the rising flood. Along the way they meet other desperate people and a stranded dog that Louis longs to save. When they finally reach the damaged, overcrowded Superdome, they experience crying babies, smelly bathrooms, and no electricity, food, or water. Tempers flare, violence threatens; Daddy is away, trying to find them some food. How Louis and his cornet reunite the family (and Louis acquires the dog) makes for a hopeful, but subdued ending: as the four of them start home, readers have no idea what they will find there. Bootman's somber oil paintings show considerable frightening detail, from the darkness of the storm to the horror of crowded humanity, with a luminous sky at the end suggesting a brighter tomorrow. An Author's Note reveals more about Katrina (along with four striking photos) assuring readers that Louis's story is based on truth. Recommended websites offer links to a documentary about children and their art after the storm, information about Katrina, and resources for teachers. Reviewer: Barbara L. Talcroft

School Library Journal

: $17.95.Gr 3–5—Louis Daniel, a 10-year-old African American boy named for famed New Orleans musician, Louis Daniel Armstrong, always keeps his cornet close at hand. When Hurricane Katrina strikes in 2005 and the levees break, Louis Daniel's father finds a floating piece of porch to ride upon. Keeping an eye out for 'gators, Louis paddles with a broom and the family moves through murky brown water and floating debris. Everything from a fake Christmas tree to a disturbing "pile of clothes" and a black and white dog float by. They take shelter in the airless, stinking, crowded, and chaotic Superdome. When his mom and he are separated from his father, Louis saves the day with his cornet. Narrator Brandon Gill gets the voice just right as the young boy's panic and frustration escalate in Myron Uhlberg's realistic fictionalized account (Peachtree, 2011) of a city overwhelmed by water and chaos. An author's note following the story provides the horrific statistics of the third most dangerous storm in U.S. history. Have the book available so students can peruse Colin Bootman's realistic oil paintings. Sure to provoke thoughtful discussions, this audiobook can also be used during weather units.—Lonna Pierce, MacArthur Elementary School, Binghamton, NY

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169245257
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	06/13/2014
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

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From the B&N Reads Blog

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Editorial Reviews

The pair behind Dad, Jackie, and Me turn their attention to the harrowing events of Hurricane Katrina as seen through the eyes of a fictional child. Ten-year-old Louis Daniel is African-American and a horn player like his idol, Louis Armstrong. He goes to bed during a fierce storm and awakens to encroaching water. 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." Uhlberg hints at the death toll: "y broom hit a pile of clothes. Mama covered my eyes. ‘Don't look, Baby,' she said. But I couldn't help looking." The dark-hued, realistic illustrations create a somber mood that refuses to lift even when the family finally reaches the Superdome. The boy's shiny cornet, saved from floodwaters, figures prominently in the family's experience at the chaotic stadium, giving comfort and continuity. Readers are in for a deeply personal and sometimes uncomfortable look at a disaster whose ramifications are still being felt. The book concludes with author notes and several photographs. Ages 7–11. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

Though they are from California and Brooklyn, author and illustrator met at a conference in New Orleans in 2006 and decided to collaborate on a project about Katrina. The story focuses on ten-year-old Louis Daniel and his parents, who are waiting anxiously for the wild storm to abate. When it does, Daddy discovers water on the doorstep and decides they have to leave immediately. Louis is not about to go without his beloved brass cornet—he hopes one day to play like his idol, Louis Daniel Armstrong. Outside they hear that the levee has broken and everyone's heading south. Their journey towards the Superdome, where there may be refuge, is terrifying, as Daddy puts Louis and his mother on a wooden bit of porch and pushes them through the rising flood. Along the way they meet other desperate people and a stranded dog that Louis longs to save. When they finally reach the damaged, overcrowded Superdome, they experience crying babies, smelly bathrooms, and no electricity, food, or water. Tempers flare, violence threatens; Daddy is away, trying to find them some food. How Louis and his cornet reunite the family (and Louis acquires the dog) makes for a hopeful, but subdued ending: as the four of them start home, readers have no idea what they will find there. Bootman's somber oil paintings show considerable frightening detail, from the darkness of the storm to the horror of crowded humanity, with a luminous sky at the end suggesting a brighter tomorrow. An Author's Note reveals more about Katrina (along with four striking photos) assuring readers that Louis's story is based on truth. Recommended websites offer links to a documentary about children and their art after the storm, information about Katrina, and resources for teachers. Reviewer: Barbara L. Talcroft

Children's Literature - Barbara L. Talcroft

: $17.95.Gr 3–5—Louis Daniel, a 10-year-old African American boy named for famed New Orleans musician, Louis Daniel Armstrong, always keeps his cornet close at hand. When Hurricane Katrina strikes in 2005 and the levees break, Louis Daniel's father finds a floating piece of porch to ride upon. Keeping an eye out for 'gators, Louis paddles with a broom and the family moves through murky brown water and floating debris. Everything from a fake Christmas tree to a disturbing "pile of clothes" and a black and white dog float by. They take shelter in the airless, stinking, crowded, and chaotic Superdome. When his mom and he are separated from his father, Louis saves the day with his cornet. Narrator Brandon Gill gets the voice just right as the young boy's panic and frustration escalate in Myron Uhlberg's realistic fictionalized account (Peachtree, 2011) of a city overwhelmed by water and chaos. An author's note following the story provides the horrific statistics of the third most dangerous storm in U.S. history. Have the book available so students can peruse Colin Bootman's realistic oil paintings. Sure to provoke thoughtful discussions, this audiobook can also be used during weather units.—Lonna Pierce, MacArthur Elementary School, Binghamton, NY

School Library Journal