Hurricane Child

First Title Value for Searching:

Hurricane Child

Personal Author:

Callender, Kheryn

Physical Description:

214 pages ; 22 cm.

Summary:

Born on Water Island in the Virgin Islands during a hurricane, which is considered bad luck, twelve-year-old Caroline falls in love with another girl--and together they set out in a hurricane to find Caroline's missing mother.

Subject Term:

African American girls -- Juvenile fiction.

Mothers and daughters -- Juvenile fiction

Missing persons -- Juvenile fiction

Fathers and daughters -- Juvenile fiction

Friendship -- Juvenile fiction

Hurricanes -- Juvenile fiction.

Acting out (Psychology) -- Juvenile fiction.

Audience/Lexile:

1010 L

Publication Info:

New York : Scholastic Press, 2019, c2018.

Subject:

African American girls -- Juvenile fiction.

Mothers and daughters -- Juvenile fiction

Missing persons -- Juvenile fiction

Fathers and daughters -- Juvenile fiction

Friendship -- Juvenile fiction

Hurricanes -- Juvenile fiction.

Acting out (Psychology) -- Juvenile fiction.

United States Virgin Islands -- Juvenile fiction.

Afro-American girls

Girls, African American

Enactment (Psychology)

American Virgin Islands

American Virgins

Američka Djevičanska ostrva

Americké Panenské ostrovy

Amerika Virgin adaları

Amerikaanse Maagde-eilande

Amerikanikes Parthenoi Nēsoi

Amerikanische Jungferninseln

Amerikanischi Jumpfereinsle

Amerikanske Jomfruøer

Amerikańske kněžniske kupy

Amerikanski Virdzhinski ostrovi

Amerykanskii͡a Virhinskii͡a astravy

AQSh Virgin utraut͡hary

Bí-kok Virgin Kûn-tó

Birjina uharte amerikarrak

Iles Vièrges amèriquênes

Illes Verges Americanes

Illes Verges Nord-americanes

Inizi Gwerc'h ar Stadoù-Unanet

Islas Vírgenes de los Estados Unidos

Islas Virgenes nin Estados Unidos

Islas Virgenes (U.S.)

Isles de Vierges (U.S.)

Isles des Vierges (U.S.)

Islles Vírxenes Americanes

Islles Vírxenes d'Estaos Xuníos

Isole Vergini (U.S.)

Parthenoi Nēsoi tōn Ēnōmenōn Politeiōn

U.S.V.I.

U.S. Virgin Islands

Ühendriikide Neitsisaared

US Virgin Islands

USA Neitsisaared

Usonaj Virgulininsuloj

USVI

V.I.

Virgin Islands (American)

Virgin Islands of the United States

Virgin Islands (U.S.)

Virgin Islands (USA)

Παρθένοι Νήσοι των Ηνωμένων Πολιτειών

Αμερικανικές Παρθένοι Νήσοι

Амерыканскія Віргінскія астравы

Американски Вирджински острови

SAILS ISBN:

9781338129304

9781338129311

Available:

Library	Shelf Number	Shelf Location	Status
Searching... Fall River Main	JPB-4 CAL	CHILDREN PAPERBACKS	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Attleboro Public Library	MR CALLENDER,K	MIDDLE READER	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Berkley Public Library	J FIC CALLENDER	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Elizabeth Taber Library	J CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Fairhaven-Millicent	JFIC CALLENDER	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Fiske Public Library	J PRIDE SHELF/CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Mansfield Public Library	Y FIC CALLENDER	YOUTH-FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Middleborough Public Library	JF CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... New Bedford Francis J. Lawler Branch	J FIC CALLENDER	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... New Bedford Free Public Library	J FIC CALLENDER	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... New Bedford High School	FIC CAL	FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Norfolk Freeman Kennedy School	F CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Norton Public Library	J CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Pembroke Public Library	J FIC CALLENDER, K.	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Raynham Library	JFICTION CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Roderick School	YA FIC CAL	YOUNG ADULT FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Seekonk - Aitken School	FIC CAL	FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Seekonk Public Library	JFIC CALLENDER	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Somerset Public Library	Y CALLENDER KHERYN	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Swansea Public Library	J CALLENDER, K	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... West Bridgewater PL	J CALLENDER, KHERYN	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Westport Free Public Library	J FIC CAL	CHILDREN FICTION	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Prepare to be swept up by this exquisite novel that reminds us that grief and love can open the world in mystical ways. Winner of the Stonewall Book Award! Winner of the Lambda Literary Award! Caroline Murphy is a Hurricane Child.Being born during a hurricane is unlucky, and twelve-year-old Caroline has had her share of bad luck lately. She's hated and bullied by everyone in her small school on St. Thomas of the US Virgin Islands, a spirit only she can see won't stop following her, and -- worst of all -- Caroline's mother left home one day and never came back.But when a new student named Kalinda arrives, Caroline's luck begins to turn around. Kalinda, a solemn girl from Barbados with a special smile for everyone, becomes Caroline's first and only friend -- and the person for whom Caroline has begun to develop a crush.Now, Caroline must find the strength to confront her feelings for Kalinda, brave the spirit stalking her through the islands, and face the reason her mother abandoned her. Together, Caroline and Kalinda must set out in a hurricane to find Caroline's missing mother -- before Caroline loses her forever.

Reviews (5)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Twelve-year-old Caroline Murphy was born during a hurricane, which is considered a curse in her home of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, and she's convinced that she's the recipient of bad luck. Caroline's mother left her alone with her father more than a year ago, sending occasional postcards that slowly dwindled to nothing; Caroline is bullied at school for her darker skin; and she begins to see a spirit dressed in black and wonders whether it means help or harm. When Kalinda arrives from Barbados, she strikes Caroline as a true individual, someone who can help her on her quest to find her mother, and things begin to look up. Then Caroline's admiration of Kalinda becomes romantic love, which is not well received in her community, and she must face her feelings on all fronts. Callender's debut novel contains absorbing descriptions of the island ("The paint gets big bubbles whenever it rains so that I can pick and pick and pick at them until they burst") and is a folkloric tale about overcoming old narratives and creating new ones. Ages 8-12. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Horn Book Review

Twelve-year-old Caroline Murphy, who lives on tiny Water Island near St. Thomas, is certain that she is cursed, and she may be right. Born inauspiciously during a hurricanea portent of bad luckCaroline was left behind with her father when her mother left without explanation. With the darkest skin and the thickest hair in the whole Catholic school, Caroline is bullied by classmates and teachers alike. She is also haunted by a spirita woman in black that only Caroline can see. Things finally begin to change for the better when new student Kalinda arrives from Barbados and instantly charms everyone, including Caroline. The immediacy of Carolines present-tense narration thoroughly immerses readers in an emotional tempest. Desperation to mend her broken family meets the rising tide of her crush on Kalinda as Caroline struggles to confront her feelings and the truth about her mothers departure. Callenders debut masterfully deploys the rich landscape of Caribbean life and is trenchant in its portrayal of the cruel reality of prejudice alongside the fragility and resilience of inner strength. Fans of Tracey Baptistes The Jumbies will find similar thoughtful exploration of island identities and nuanced themes of difference, belonging, and family. anastasia m. Collins (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* One year and three months have passed since Caroline's mother left her behind on Water Island, adjacent to Saint Thomas. Did she desert her because she doesn't love her, or is it possible that the strange spirit Caroline keeps seeing, the woman in black, is involved in her disappearance? Caroline finds a true friend in Kalinda, a rare new girl who arrives on the island from Barbados, though for Caroline, their connection runs deeper than mere friendship. But it's not only that Kalinda can see the spirits, too it's everything about Kalinda, and soon Caroline harbors an all-consuming crush . . . or could it be love? Caroline and Kalinda's quest leads to stunning revelations that shatter Caroline's conception of her mother. Set against the richly evoked backdrop of the Caribbean, Callender's novel captures the exquisite agony and pain that accompany rejection and abandonment. Caroline's search for answers provides a steady through line for the story, but it's the deeper questioning and reflection that set this book apart. Whether Caroline is contemplating the way religion is invoked to address same-sex attraction or the possibility of multiple realities existing alongside one another, the inner workings of her mind pay homage to the complexity of being 12. Callender's debut enriches the growing body of LGBTQ fiction for upper-elementary- and middle-school students. Visceral, pensive, and memorable.--Barnes, Jennifer Copyright 2018 Booklist

School Library Journal Review

Gr 4-6-Twelve-year-old Caroline and her father live on Water Island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Caroline, known as a "Hurricane Child," since she was born during a hurricane, is plagued with bad luck. She sees a spirit-the woman in black-that no one else can see. She is bullied daily at school by both children and her teachers who make cruel remarks about her dark skin tone. Her feelings of loneliness are compounded by the fact that her mother left and never returned. When a new student from Barbados named Kalinda joins her class, Caroline is drawn to Kalinda's confidence and disinterest in befriending the bullies. The two girls soon become close friends. Caroline realizes her feelings for Kalinda are more than platonic and when she expresses them to Kalinda, they are unfortunately met with resistance. Nevertheless, Kalinda agrees to help Caroline find her mother in the midst of a terrible storm. By the end, the protagonist is able to feel more at peace with herself, her family, and her complex relationship with Kalinda. The novel moves at a substantial pace and contains intermittent flashbacks. Told solely from Caroline's perspective, readers get an in-depth understanding of her experiences and feelings. Lush descriptions bring the Caribbean environment to vivid life. VERDICT An excellent and nuanced coming-of-age tale with a dash of magical realism for readers who enjoy character-driven novels, especially those with middle grade LGBTQ+ characterizations.-Jess Gafkowitz, Brooklyn Public Library © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus Review

Born during a storm, Caroline Murphy, a 12-year-old black girl, is convinced that she has been cursed with bad luck. The old ladies around her way say this is the fate of any child born during a hurricane. Recent events in her life seem to confirm this. Feeling unwanted by everyone, especially since the abrupt departure of her mom, Caroline leads a difficult life. She is bullied by those at her school in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, including her teacher, for her skin, which is darker than theirs. She is also followed around by a spiritthe woman in blackthat she is sure only she can see. The arrival of a new student from Barbados changes Caroline's life significantly. Also bullied, the exuberantly dreadlocked Kalinda becomes Caroline's first and only friend, and soon Caroline's feelings blossom into something more than platonic. This spells problems for Caroline, since feelings like these are considered sinful in Catholic school. Caroline now must deal with growing up without a mother and her feelings for Kalinda, all while trying to figure out why the woman in black will not leave her alone. Her journey to the answers to her most burning questions finds her discovering much about herself and those around her. Writing in Caroline's present-tense voice, Callender draws readers in and makes them identify with Caroline's angst and sorrow and joy and pain.Embedding her appealing protagonist in a fully realized Caribbean setting, Callender has readers rooting for Caroline the whole way. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Excerpts

My ma's voice is rough and low. When she speaks to strangers on the telephone, they call her "sir." I guess it must be surprising to some people, the way her voice sounds, because she's so beautiful--just about the prettiest woman you've ever seen--but I think it suits her just fine. I love the way her rough voice vibrates through the air like a beat on a drum. She sings around the house. Under her breath, since people say her voice is so ugly all the time. Why you wanna fly, Blackbird? That's the song that's stuck in my head now. You ain't never gonna fly. *** Kalinda walks into the room, head as high as ever, taking her time smiling and greeting everyone in the room. She leaves me for last, but I know it's only because she has the most to say to me. She takes someone else's seat beside me and takes my hand and tells me that I would never believe what has happened. Excerpted from Hurricane Child by Kheryn Callender All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.