LS 5623 Module 3: HURRICANE by Terry Trueman

Trueman, Terry. 2008. HURRICANE. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 006000018X

“I think about all of us digging for the dead, digging for food, sharing our water, helping each other in every way we could. I think about finding my courage…I’ll admit it: I am proud of what I’ve done” (p. 133-134)

Printz Honor book author Terry Trueman shares the fictional story of Jose Cruz, a young boy living in La Rupa, Honduras with his parents and five siblings. When Hurricane Mitch hits Honduras while his father and older brother are out of town, Jose must stand in as head of the family to help what is left of his town recover from the storm and subsequent mudslide that took the lives of half of his neighbors.

Trueman has written a simple character in Jose Cruz and, told through his young point of view, Hurricane Mitch and its effects are also told simply, making the horrors of the storm easy to understand for grade school students. Young readers will also find it interesting to read about the very American staples Jose references throughout the story (his brother plays with Star Wars action figures and he talks about Happy Meals from McDonald’s). While these references may help readers connect to the main character, they may also create confusion when identifying the location of the story. Luckily Trueman spends time describing the countryside of La Rupa, as well as the people and housing in Jose’s small pueblo.

HURRICANE is a quick and somber read. The story of Hurricane Mitch is devastating; the storm killed over 5,000 citizens of Honduras. While “Trueman doesn't flinch from the grislier facts (in one scene, José leads a dig for groceries and finds the corpse of the grocer)” (Publisher’s Weekly), he does so through the eyes of a teenage boy who is not sure how to deal with the loss and grief he experiences in such a short time. This novel “offers a glimpse into the horrors and challenges of surviving such an overwhelming natural disaster, leaving students with much to think about” (Romirell).

References:
2008. "Hurricane." Publishers Weekly 255, no. 10: 82. Education Research Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 22, 2011).
Romriell, Deanna. 2008. "Hurricane." School Library Journal 54, no. 12: 70. Education Research Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 22, 2011).