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Dogs of the Drowned City #1
The Storm
When a hurricane forces his family to evacuate without him, Shep the German Shepard is confused. Where is his boy? Will he ever return? And what will Shep do in the meantime, now that the extra bowls of food -- not to mention all those tasty things he found in the big cold box -- are gone?
Then another dog shows up at Shep's window and convinces him to escape. There's food outside, and a whole empty city to explore. Shep just wants to go home . . . but the adventure of a lifetime is just beginning.
Then another dog shows up at Shep's window and convinces him to escape. There's food outside, and a whole empty city to explore. Shep just wants to go home . . . but the adventure of a lifetime is just beginning.
224 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2011
39 people are currently reading
938 people want to read
About the author
Dayna Lorentz
13 books167 followersDayna is a writer of children's, young adult, and adult literature.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
April 8, 2014
I downloaded this to my kindle when I was searching for the Survivors books, but didn't read it because I really wanted Erin Hunter and nothing else. I was surprised to find I enjoyed this more than Survivors. It may be these dogs have a better understanding of the human world, or better characterization. I still have no idea of the disaster in the other series, but this was clear. I believe after Katrina there were changes to the evacuating without pets because people wouldn't leave without them, but perhaps this is set earlier.
Recommended for fans of Erin Hunter, but still a definite individual work that may just be better. I adore animal fiction, so if you do also, then give this a try!
Recommended for fans of Erin Hunter, but still a definite individual work that may just be better. I adore animal fiction, so if you do also, then give this a try!
October 25, 2014
I enjoyed this book quite a lot, but it's exactly the kind of thing I like best. It's an animal book, where the animals take center stage, and the humans are shunted off to the side (or left out almost entirely, as is the case in this book). Granted, the dogs are a little humanized (and not only because they talk), but that's to be expected. For the reader to properly understand and empathize with the characters, they have to be a little human, otherwise the story wouldn't be so interesting and there would be no real heroes or villains. I don't mind my fictional animals having certain "human" characteristics, especially the ones that animals really do seem to have.
This book did feel a little bit like someone read "Warriors" by Erin Hunter and then decided to do a dog version of it. Some of the action descriptions are straight out of that series.
Knowing what I do about dogs, some of Shep's story trips over the line between suspended disbelief and absolute nonsense, but I give it a pass because it makes his character stronger in some ways.
But, in others, it makes him less believable. At the risk of spoilers, it seems to me that Shep ought to be smarter, given his experience (not to mention that he is a German Shepherd, one of the most versatile dog breeds there is). Admittedly, that's what makes the group valuable to him, with him largely playing the role of hired muscle.
My other complaint largely rests with the names for things. I've encountered it in so many other books that it's just sort of tiresome. Things like "food room" and "light window" are alright the very first time you encounter them in a book, because it's an easy way of establishing how very different the world looks to dogs from how humans view it. But then, when they have picked up on things like "kibble", "treats" and the like, it quickly becomes ridiculous. People say "kitchen" all the time. It's a word that dogs might well know, even though there's never cause for them to display that knowledge.
Besides, after having encountered such terminology in multiple books, I can say with some confidence that it ceases to be creative after a point, because all you're doing is reinventing the terminology and choosing new and increasingly bizarre phrases to avoid being accused of having "stolen" your ideas from someone else (as though nonsense phrases are what make a book unique or interesting). Aside from which, it becomes tedious to try and guess what the author means and to read through the description and association with the object in question, only to realize, "Oh, it's a television. Why didn't you just SAY that and get on with things?!".
All of that said, I did enjoy this book, in spite of these and other flaws (an obvious one being using the same words over and over to describe something, which is just a matter of stopping now and then to reword something that happens a lot to make it more interesting. This is different from "nonsense phrases". It's choosing to say "besides" instead of "aside from" or "also". While you don't need to change every sentence so that none of them resemble each other, a little variety can go a long way).
I'm hopeful that I'll eventually get to read the second and third ones and also eager to see if the author has improved, because I really do like this concept.
This book did feel a little bit like someone read "Warriors" by Erin Hunter and then decided to do a dog version of it. Some of the action descriptions are straight out of that series.
Knowing what I do about dogs, some of Shep's story trips over the line between suspended disbelief and absolute nonsense, but I give it a pass because it makes his character stronger in some ways.
But, in others, it makes him less believable. At the risk of spoilers, it seems to me that Shep ought to be smarter, given his experience (not to mention that he is a German Shepherd, one of the most versatile dog breeds there is). Admittedly, that's what makes the group valuable to him, with him largely playing the role of hired muscle.
My other complaint largely rests with the names for things. I've encountered it in so many other books that it's just sort of tiresome. Things like "food room" and "light window" are alright the very first time you encounter them in a book, because it's an easy way of establishing how very different the world looks to dogs from how humans view it. But then, when they have picked up on things like "kibble", "treats" and the like, it quickly becomes ridiculous. People say "kitchen" all the time. It's a word that dogs might well know, even though there's never cause for them to display that knowledge.
Besides, after having encountered such terminology in multiple books, I can say with some confidence that it ceases to be creative after a point, because all you're doing is reinventing the terminology and choosing new and increasingly bizarre phrases to avoid being accused of having "stolen" your ideas from someone else (as though nonsense phrases are what make a book unique or interesting). Aside from which, it becomes tedious to try and guess what the author means and to read through the description and association with the object in question, only to realize, "Oh, it's a television. Why didn't you just SAY that and get on with things?!".
All of that said, I did enjoy this book, in spite of these and other flaws (an obvious one being using the same words over and over to describe something, which is just a matter of stopping now and then to reword something that happens a lot to make it more interesting. This is different from "nonsense phrases". It's choosing to say "besides" instead of "aside from" or "also". While you don't need to change every sentence so that none of them resemble each other, a little variety can go a long way).
I'm hopeful that I'll eventually get to read the second and third ones and also eager to see if the author has improved, because I really do like this concept.
September 18, 2015
This book is superb book about dogs, and if you love dogs then its the perfect book for you. The protagonist, Shep the german shepherd is superb and the story he says to his friends of the Great Wolf and the Black Dog was amazing. It also gives some lessons to the humans. I like Shep and after the rescue it takes you to a some different conclusion that's amazing. You didn't have link of what's going next. I enjoyed reading the whole book. Absolutely amazing for dog-lovers. A bit of epilogue: hurricane leaves shep alone in the home and a dog convinces him to escape and his adventure for his lifetime is in the beginning......
April 9, 2017
If you like pets and animals it is a very good and suspensfull book, good read!
November 19, 2025
I stopped around the halfway mark. Maybe 2.5, rounded down.
It wasn't necessarily horrible, but not quite good either.
I wasn't a fan of the scene transitions as it felt more like just getting slammed into something random rather than seamlessly getting moved into whatever's next. One scene that stands out is when Shep walked to the living room and just started describing the vacuum in detail randomly. It said he walked in there, but it was out of place because it had nothing to do with anything I just read or anything from that point on.
I realize he's not really this old, worldly dog with mountains of experience, but he does specifically tell Zeus he is wise, so it felt odd to see that he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed for pretty much every encounter. He eats all the food twice. He doesn't know what hunting is, which I find hard to believe. All the dogs are almost described more as cats in their mannerisms; all of them in every fight are slashing their claws at the other's muzzle and just generally use their paws in very cat ways.
I did find myself frequently bored with the narration.
The premise is cool, and I would put it very on par with Survivors in terms of how young it reads. It did, however, come out a year before it though (2011 vs. 2012), so Survivors is the rip-off here and The Storm didn't lose points on that one for me.
It wasn't necessarily horrible, but not quite good either.
I wasn't a fan of the scene transitions as it felt more like just getting slammed into something random rather than seamlessly getting moved into whatever's next. One scene that stands out is when Shep walked to the living room and just started describing the vacuum in detail randomly. It said he walked in there, but it was out of place because it had nothing to do with anything I just read or anything from that point on.
I realize he's not really this old, worldly dog with mountains of experience, but he does specifically tell Zeus he is wise, so it felt odd to see that he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed for pretty much every encounter. He eats all the food twice. He doesn't know what hunting is, which I find hard to believe. All the dogs are almost described more as cats in their mannerisms; all of them in every fight are slashing their claws at the other's muzzle and just generally use their paws in very cat ways.
I did find myself frequently bored with the narration.
The premise is cool, and I would put it very on par with Survivors in terms of how young it reads. It did, however, come out a year before it though (2011 vs. 2012), so Survivors is the rip-off here and The Storm didn't lose points on that one for me.
January 19, 2024
I like reading YA stories. They are quick reads, don't require a lot of thought, and usually are a great way for me to unwind before sleeping.
I just finished the Dogs of the Drowned City series by Dayna Lorentz. I've been a vet tech; dogs are my favorite animal and I really liked this series. I feel Lorentz got the dog personalities right, her events seem realistic, and I like the underlying themes she explores. I'd definitely recommend this series for YA readers.
I just finished the Dogs of the Drowned City series by Dayna Lorentz. I've been a vet tech; dogs are my favorite animal and I really liked this series. I feel Lorentz got the dog personalities right, her events seem realistic, and I like the underlying themes she explores. I'd definitely recommend this series for YA readers.
April 6, 2025
I think this was an awesome book. The concept of dogs in a pack and supporting themselves without humans was interesting. I like the pack aspect an dynamics that was in the book. Sometimes the book can be predictable, but maybe that's just me, seeing as I read 24/7. I love animal fiction books and I seem to be obsessed with dogs and wolves. If anyone has recommendations, please share. in all it was quite a good book.
December 29, 2023
I first read this book in elementary school after snagging it from the shelves of a Scholastic Book Fair. Now in my 20s I'm picking it up again to read the rest of the series. Touching and full of adventure it was fun to read again as an adult.
May 16, 2017
Yesss
I love this book. Who cares if it's for kids? What an awesome tale. I can’t wait to read the next book. Definitely recommend.
I love this book. Who cares if it's for kids? What an awesome tale. I can’t wait to read the next book. Definitely recommend.
March 4, 2018
Who wouldn't LOVE a book about heroic dogs. I love this book and the way the author seemed to read well into a dogs mid when they miss their family.
February 16, 2019
Wonderful book! But I almost flipped when Zeus came out of the crowd at the end. I mean if you read the beginning of the book you would never have expected what he did at the end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2019
2.5 Stars.
August 17, 2021
This would be a good read for a lower-reader. The storm is action-packed and heart-pounding. I’d like to hear more on how the dogs survive.
December 30, 2024
I liked this it was a fun read there was a nice plot twist.
December 16, 2025
Really underrated book! wish this had more of a fandom
August 27, 2017
The Storm by Dayna Lorentz was a good book. The genre is fiction and the main dog was a German Shepard named Shep and he don't know why his family left him alone. He also don't know why there is a storm destroying his city. Shep made friends and allies, he also lost friends and made enemies. He is the leader of the pack and he is the one who will protect the yappers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 14, 2014
This was a fun book with endearing characters and a good moral message.
The story is told cleverly from a dog's perspective - the dogs pant when they find something funny, they say things like, "I need to bark with you" and "As you can smell..." and recall their many battles with the 'floor sucker' (vacuum cleaner).
Better still are the charming personalities of the main characters and their friendships with each other, especially the noble lead dog, Shep. Shep is an escapee from an underground dog fighting circuit, large and powerful, but with a heart of gold. He does not love violence or conflict and wants nothing more than for his boy to return to him, but is forced by circumstances and his conscience to come to the rescue of a host of other dogs, abandoned like him against the ravages of nature and the predations of a wild dog pack. He keeps on keepin' on, even when his attempts to do right backfire, the other dogs prove ungrateful and annoying, and his best friend turns into a deadly foe. Though a dog, Shep's courage, perseverance, and compassion make him a worthy role model to young readers. I daresay that Shep's faith, movingly portrayed in several spots throughout the book, resonates as a canine mythologizing of the Christian message, and is sure to warm the hearts of all good people.
I don't know what age of reader this book was intended for, but it has some darker themes and a smattering of nasty violence, though none of these seem gratuitous or are played for titillation. Still, caveat emptor if you are buying this for very young children. Also, the cast of characters gets pretty large by the end of the book and it is hard to keep track of who is who. This is a minor complaint, however, and I enjoyed the book a great deal.
The story is told cleverly from a dog's perspective - the dogs pant when they find something funny, they say things like, "I need to bark with you" and "As you can smell..." and recall their many battles with the 'floor sucker' (vacuum cleaner).
Better still are the charming personalities of the main characters and their friendships with each other, especially the noble lead dog, Shep. Shep is an escapee from an underground dog fighting circuit, large and powerful, but with a heart of gold. He does not love violence or conflict and wants nothing more than for his boy to return to him, but is forced by circumstances and his conscience to come to the rescue of a host of other dogs, abandoned like him against the ravages of nature and the predations of a wild dog pack. He keeps on keepin' on, even when his attempts to do right backfire, the other dogs prove ungrateful and annoying, and his best friend turns into a deadly foe. Though a dog, Shep's courage, perseverance, and compassion make him a worthy role model to young readers. I daresay that Shep's faith, movingly portrayed in several spots throughout the book, resonates as a canine mythologizing of the Christian message, and is sure to warm the hearts of all good people.
I don't know what age of reader this book was intended for, but it has some darker themes and a smattering of nasty violence, though none of these seem gratuitous or are played for titillation. Still, caveat emptor if you are buying this for very young children. Also, the cast of characters gets pretty large by the end of the book and it is hard to keep track of who is who. This is a minor complaint, however, and I enjoyed the book a great deal.
January 6, 2019
My memory of this book may be a bit faded, but here is my review of this particular book.
The good:
The cover art is very good, and the person who drew it did a good job of drawing it.
The story had a very good concept, and i wonder if survivors which is a book that came out a year or two later was kinda inspired by it as they're very similar as they both go with the concept of dogs living in a town destroyed by a huge natural disaster that makes their owners leave.
The plot was very good being very engaging through out the whole entire thing making this a very good page turner book as it make me want to read more of it, and make want to know what happens next in the book.
The main character of the book was likable, and so were the other characters despite being very simplistically made. I also liked that the book described how the dogs saw the world in their own unique way, and gave them like their own view on it basically.
The bad:
The main villain made no sense to me, and neither did his reason for becoming one. Like there was no build up, reason, or whatever for being a villain, it's just like " Oh hey guys I am villain now " all of the sudden with a poorly written excuse which disappointed me.
The characterization of the characters in this book as a whole could've been better as they were very simplistic, and could've had more to them then what was written honestly.
I may change this review when I read it again, but right now this is my review of the first book.
The good:
The cover art is very good, and the person who drew it did a good job of drawing it.
The story had a very good concept, and i wonder if survivors which is a book that came out a year or two later was kinda inspired by it as they're very similar as they both go with the concept of dogs living in a town destroyed by a huge natural disaster that makes their owners leave.
The plot was very good being very engaging through out the whole entire thing making this a very good page turner book as it make me want to read more of it, and make want to know what happens next in the book.
The main character of the book was likable, and so were the other characters despite being very simplistically made. I also liked that the book described how the dogs saw the world in their own unique way, and gave them like their own view on it basically.
The bad:
The main villain made no sense to me, and neither did his reason for becoming one. Like there was no build up, reason, or whatever for being a villain, it's just like " Oh hey guys I am villain now " all of the sudden with a poorly written excuse which disappointed me.
The characterization of the characters in this book as a whole could've been better as they were very simplistic, and could've had more to them then what was written honestly.
I may change this review when I read it again, but right now this is my review of the first book.
November 19, 2015
How bad could the storm possibly be?
In the book The Storm Dogs of the Drowned City by Dayna Lorentz one of the main characters Shep is a dog that grew up in the fight cage but now is friendly as can be. He is a German Sheppard who was abandoned at his house for a storm. He was forced to leave his house because of dehydration and starvation. Shep saved a dog named Cheese who is sweet and loyal. Cheese is a tough border collie who is sweet to a little pup named Oscar. Shep and Cheese saves other dogs and goes off on a life or death journey. My favorite part of the book was the fight between pets and wild dogs, as well as the fight between Shep and Kaz.
Who will live and who will die on this great deadly journey?
In the book The Storm Dogs of the Drowned City by Dayna Lorentz one of the main characters Shep is a dog that grew up in the fight cage but now is friendly as can be. He is a German Sheppard who was abandoned at his house for a storm. He was forced to leave his house because of dehydration and starvation. Shep saved a dog named Cheese who is sweet and loyal. Cheese is a tough border collie who is sweet to a little pup named Oscar. Shep and Cheese saves other dogs and goes off on a life or death journey. My favorite part of the book was the fight between pets and wild dogs, as well as the fight between Shep and Kaz.
Who will live and who will die on this great deadly journey?
December 27, 2011
Shep's dreams are troubled by the nightmares of the fight ring. Saved he now has a life with the man, the woman and his boy.Together his boy and him go to the park and play and he is allowed to run and play with the other dogs.
Then one day his family has a visitor and he hears the stranger no dogs allowed. The woman puts out extra kibble, water and then they leave locking the door and Shep inside.Outside it is raining a lot!
This is a tale of survival from the dogs point. Katrina left many pets homeless , this is their story.
Then one day his family has a visitor and he hears the stranger no dogs allowed. The woman puts out extra kibble, water and then they leave locking the door and Shep inside.Outside it is raining a lot!
This is a tale of survival from the dogs point. Katrina left many pets homeless , this is their story.
October 30, 2015
This book is the best!! It was my favorite book in 2nd through 4th grade so I decided to read it again and I still really like it. My favorite part is probably when the pack is in the hotel rescuing all the dogs. I think that the author did a really good job writing the book from a dogs point of view. I am so excited to read the next book in the series. My favorite character would probably be Shep. He is a German Shepard my favorite breed of dog and he is the main character. I really hope the author writes more books.
June 11, 2013
This was a nice story told from the viewpoint of dogs. Shep helps free trapped dogs, after freeing himself from his house. They form a pack, then crash at a place that has food and water. Shep had a troubled past before he was taken to the boy Shep misses, from an animal shelter. The dogs have their own mythology stories. One of the biggest themes in the book was Big vs. Small dogs. A friendship gone terribly wrong, and wild dogs that clam anything they see as theirs.
February 20, 2016
This is a great animal fantasy, dealing with how a group of dogs survive in a city that human beings evacuate because of a hurricane. It suggests New Orleans and Katrina. Shep makes a great central characters, and the book effectively shows his struggles to lead a group of dogs that previously have not had any contact with each other (except for a few who met at the park). Don't let the popularity of Survivors deter you from reading this one. It's a great read.
September 26, 2012
This book is so fantastic! It is about a dog named Shep. He lives a happy life until one stormy day his family has to move without him because of an earthquake. He makes friends on the streets, and he has to fight wild dogs that are very aggressive. It is very sad at the end because one of the other dogs on his side dies while fighting.
February 6, 2013
I read this one with my son for school. (which led to us reading #2 The Pack) How does anyone leave an animal behind when you know a hurrican is coming? After I got over that fact, the story was great. It was a great lesson on overcoming adversity, loyalty, friendship and betrayal. My son enjoyed it as well.
February 4, 2016
Dog-loving kids might enjoy this series about dogs surviving a major storm/hurricane without their humans. There's suspense and a bit of internal strife for Shep as he weighs his abilities to be a leader in crisis, as well as managing his previous instincts as a dog fighter. I myself found it confusing determining who was who among all the different dog descriptions.
July 1, 2017
Shep and other neighborhood dogs are left behind when their families evacuate for a hurricane and there are "no pets allowed." So they don't have enough food and have to escape their dens and figure out how to survive.
March 31, 2015
This book was slow at first but once I got into it I couldn't put it down. I loved the plot and the bond between the dogs and the twist at the end between two of the main characters. Cannot wait to read the next book to find out what happens.
May 2, 2016
Pretty good. Kinda sad but it was a good read. Action packed and I enjoyed to read it. Recommended it to my friend they said they said they enjoyed it to. If you like books abut dogs then you will love this book. Highly Recommend it!!
March 3, 2012
It's Icy Cool!
Gabriel was really into the suspense in this one and, he didn't mention, but for him it was a tear-jerker.
Gabriel was really into the suspense in this one and, he didn't mention, but for him it was a tear-jerker.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews