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Storm by Donna Jo Napoli
A sixteen-year-old stowaway discovers her destiny on Noah’s ark in this riveting reimagining from award-winning author Donna Jo Napoli, available in time for the March 2014 major motion picture Noah.The rain starts suddenly, hard and fast. After days of downpour, her family lost, Sebah takes shelter in a tree, eating pine cones and the raw meat of animals that float by. With each passing day, her companion, a boy named Aban, grows weaker. When their tree is struck by lightning, Sebah is tempted just to die in the flames rather than succumb to a slow, watery death. Instead, she and Aban build a raft. What they find on the stormy seas is beyond imagining: a gigantic ark. But Sebah does not know what she’ll find on board, and Aban is too weak to leave their raft.
Themes of family, loss, and ultimately, survival and love make for a timeless story. Donna Jo Napoli has imagined a new protagonist to tell the story of Noah and his ark. As rain batters the earth, Noah, his family, and hordes of animals wait out the storm, ready to carry out their duty of repopulating the earth. Hidden below deck…is Sebah.
Themes of family, loss, and ultimately, survival and love make for a timeless story. Donna Jo Napoli has imagined a new protagonist to tell the story of Noah and his ark. As rain batters the earth, Noah, his family, and hordes of animals wait out the storm, ready to carry out their duty of repopulating the earth. Hidden below deck…is Sebah.
Hardcover
First published February 11, 2014
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About the author
Donna Jo Napoli
138 books1,112 followersDonna Jo Napoli is both a linguist and a writer of children's and YA fiction. She loves to garden and bake bread, and even dreams of moving to the woods and becoming a naturalist.
At various times her house and yard have been filled with dogs, cats, birds, and rabbits. For thirteen years she had a cat named Taxi, and liked to go outside and call, "Taxi!" to make the neighbors wonder. But dear dear Taxi died in 2009.
She has five children, seven grandchildren, and currently lives outside Philadelphia. She received her BA in mathematics in 1970 and her Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures in 1973, both from Harvard University, then did a postdoctoral year in Linguistics at MIT. She has since taught linguistics at Smith College, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Georgetown University, the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and Swarthmore College. It was at UM that she earned tenure (in 1981) and became a full professor (in 1984). She has held visiting positions at the University of Queensland (Australia), the University of Geneva (Switzerland), Capital Normal University of Beijing (China), the University of Newcastle (UK), the University of Venice at Ca' Foscari (Italy), and the Siena School for the Liberal Arts (Italy) as well as lectured at the University of Sydney (Australia), Macquarie University (Australia), the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa), and the University of Stellenbosch (South Africa) and held a fellowship at Trinity College Dublin. In the area of linguistics she has authored, coauthored, edited, or coedited 17 books, ranging from theoretical linguistics to practical matters in language structure and use, including matters of interest to d/Deaf people. She has held grants and fellowships from numerous sources, including the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Mellon Foundation, the Sloan Foundation.
At various times her house and yard have been filled with dogs, cats, birds, and rabbits. For thirteen years she had a cat named Taxi, and liked to go outside and call, "Taxi!" to make the neighbors wonder. But dear dear Taxi died in 2009.
She has five children, seven grandchildren, and currently lives outside Philadelphia. She received her BA in mathematics in 1970 and her Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures in 1973, both from Harvard University, then did a postdoctoral year in Linguistics at MIT. She has since taught linguistics at Smith College, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Georgetown University, the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and Swarthmore College. It was at UM that she earned tenure (in 1981) and became a full professor (in 1984). She has held visiting positions at the University of Queensland (Australia), the University of Geneva (Switzerland), Capital Normal University of Beijing (China), the University of Newcastle (UK), the University of Venice at Ca' Foscari (Italy), and the Siena School for the Liberal Arts (Italy) as well as lectured at the University of Sydney (Australia), Macquarie University (Australia), the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa), and the University of Stellenbosch (South Africa) and held a fellowship at Trinity College Dublin. In the area of linguistics she has authored, coauthored, edited, or coedited 17 books, ranging from theoretical linguistics to practical matters in language structure and use, including matters of interest to d/Deaf people. She has held grants and fellowships from numerous sources, including the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Mellon Foundation, the Sloan Foundation.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
May 28, 2014
The writing in this book was terrible! It was choppy and thoughts felt unfinished all the time. I didn't feel a pull to the characters at all and I didn't care what happened to the people. I did find myself caring about the animals but she made the bonobos way too intimate and it was a bit much at times.
Noah and his family were portrayed as very normal people with very normal problems, including hating the ark. How miserable it must've been for them at times! I wish Napoli would have developed the family of Noah a bit better.
Note to self: the main character talks about "mating" a lot, whether she's referring to herself or the animals, it's the same. That wasn't terrible but the animals "mating" was a bit much. Too much for kiddo to read.
Noah and his family were portrayed as very normal people with very normal problems, including hating the ark. How miserable it must've been for them at times! I wish Napoli would have developed the family of Noah a bit better.
Note to self: the main character talks about "mating" a lot, whether she's referring to herself or the animals, it's the same. That wasn't terrible but the animals "mating" was a bit much. Too much for kiddo to read.
September 14, 2014
Interesting premise, but this book fell a bit short for me. Noah seems a few animals shy of a full ark (if you know what I mean) as well as demanding and almost cruel. I think I was expecting more interaction between Sheba and Noah's family - a real change to the well known story rather than Sheba basically observing it.
March 25, 2014
The first third of this book was great and really impressed me. I was actually enjoying it, but then it got weird. Portraying Noah's family as a very dis-functional and slightly crazy. A 16 year old pregnant girl sneaks onto the ark and hides for quite some time in the apes cage before giving birth to her child aboard the ark. Then she finds another stowaway on board as well. A very interesting premise went down hill quick.
May 21, 2014
I am very torn between a 3 and 4 star rating. I enjoyed this book. A LOT. However there were some things I found a bit off putting, mostly in its brief portrayal of Noah. It did give me a better perspective for the terrible choices that would have been placed upon Noah and his family. Even though they are saved, it would have been extremely difficult, God doesn't take away our troubles He helps us through them. It left me thinking, and will probably do so for awhile.
February 4, 2017
DNF this was a giant pile of trash!
September 9, 2014
I'll admit, I went into this book being a little wishy-washy over it. Retelling Biblical stories can go horribly bad, especially when introducing fictional characters. And Noah's tale is very particular—all the earth was flooded, and only Noah and his family were saved. There are no stowaways on the ark.
But this is fiction, and I'm forced to read it believing that this tale is fiction.
Sebah is an interesting character. She's a farmer, and by some divine miracle is saved in the great flood and manages to sneak onto Noah's ark. She's a product of her culture—she's been groomed as girls were in that time, her goals in life being to marry and provide for her family. I can't fault her for that. But she's still a strong girl, proven by her ability to survive the waters at all.
So with that in mind, there are some things that trouble me. Namely, Aban. They encounter by chance while trying to outrun the flood, and in their first meeting he hits her. Sebah doesn't seem to be the type to tolerate this kind of behavior, and she hates him and avoids him, but the moment he saves her life all is forgiven and they "marry." (aka, they mate. "Mate" being her word, not mine.) And why she continues to dwell over Aban, even after she escapes the floods, I never understood.
I guess I never got over my own issues. It's a story of a strong girl who survives the worst, but I still couldn't get into it. And that disappoints me a little. I had expected Sebah to develop more, but she ends the same way she started. After encountering Noah and his family (or at least, spying on them), and living among the animals, and surviving the flood when the rest of the world hasn't... I honestly expected more.
But this is fiction, and I'm forced to read it believing that this tale is fiction.
Sebah is an interesting character. She's a farmer, and by some divine miracle is saved in the great flood and manages to sneak onto Noah's ark. She's a product of her culture—she's been groomed as girls were in that time, her goals in life being to marry and provide for her family. I can't fault her for that. But she's still a strong girl, proven by her ability to survive the waters at all.
So with that in mind, there are some things that trouble me. Namely, Aban. They encounter by chance while trying to outrun the flood, and in their first meeting he hits her. Sebah doesn't seem to be the type to tolerate this kind of behavior, and she hates him and avoids him, but the moment he saves her life all is forgiven and they "marry." (aka, they mate. "Mate" being her word, not mine.) And why she continues to dwell over Aban, even after she escapes the floods, I never understood.
I guess I never got over my own issues. It's a story of a strong girl who survives the worst, but I still couldn't get into it. And that disappoints me a little. I had expected Sebah to develop more, but she ends the same way she started. After encountering Noah and his family (or at least, spying on them), and living among the animals, and surviving the flood when the rest of the world hasn't... I honestly expected more.
May 11, 2014
Disclaimer: I am usually not a fan of books that draw on biblical stories and imagine what would have happened "if." I find some of these "modern midrashim" blasphemous or too far-fetched.
I was very pleasantly surprised by Storm. The book stays true to the biblical timeline of the blood in terms of the rain started and stopping, the appearance of mountains, etc. Sebah is a 16-year-old stowaway who has watched her brothers and "husband" die at the waters rise. She is able to get into a porthole in the ark and ends up in the bonobos' cage (good thing she didn't end up with the tigers, or it would have been a much shorter book!). Since I loved Ape House by Sara Gruen, I really enjoyed reading about Sebah's interaction with the bonobos. I also like that Sebah had very limited interaction with the "official" passengers of the Ark, but she could describe the tensions and pressure of Noah, his sons and their wives.
This is also one of those books that works well for both young adults as well as adults. It's also a good one for book club, as it spurred discussions about dealing with all the animal refuse, how they could stand the smells, and why Noah agreed that the King of Bashan could ride on top of the Ark and how Bashan didn't get washed away or shrivel up.
I was very pleasantly surprised by Storm. The book stays true to the biblical timeline of the blood in terms of the rain started and stopping, the appearance of mountains, etc. Sebah is a 16-year-old stowaway who has watched her brothers and "husband" die at the waters rise. She is able to get into a porthole in the ark and ends up in the bonobos' cage (good thing she didn't end up with the tigers, or it would have been a much shorter book!). Since I loved Ape House by Sara Gruen, I really enjoyed reading about Sebah's interaction with the bonobos. I also like that Sebah had very limited interaction with the "official" passengers of the Ark, but she could describe the tensions and pressure of Noah, his sons and their wives.
This is also one of those books that works well for both young adults as well as adults. It's also a good one for book club, as it spurred discussions about dealing with all the animal refuse, how they could stand the smells, and why Noah agreed that the King of Bashan could ride on top of the Ark and how Bashan didn't get washed away or shrivel up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 28, 2014
Even if you didn’t grow up going to church or studying the Bible, chances are you’ve probably heard the story of Noah’s Ark. Whether you believe it really happened or consider it just another flood myth, you’re likely familiar with the story of how God spoke to Noah and warned him that a great flood would destroy the earth. God directed Noah to build a gigantic boat and gather two of each kind of animal, one male and one female, onto that boat. Once Noah had done so, rain began to fall and didn’t cease for 40 days and 40 nights.
Donna Jo Napoli’s novel Storm delves into this story of Noah’s Ark, looking at the events of the great flood from the point of view of Sebah, a fictional stowaway who survives the deluge by sneaking through one of the ark’s portholes. Sebah hides from Noah and his family, fearing she will be thrown overboard upon discovery. As she watches the family and animals go about their daily business, she realizes just how much the family’s faith will be tested by the trial and what it means to survive and begin again in a world that has been destroyed and made anew.
What I love about Napoli’s work is the way she takes a familiar story and makes you look at it a whole new way. Have you ever really considered what day-to-day life would be like trapped on an ark? Can you imagine the tedium? The strangeness of knowing your family are the only surviving members of the human race? Can you comprehend just how much rain it would take to destroy the planet? And, once the rain ends, do you have any idea just how long it would take for the water to recede enough for the world to be inhabitable again? Can you imagine what said world would look like?
These things never occurred to me before, but they certainly have to Napoli. She paints a very convincing picture of the minutia of living on an ark with no one but your inlaws and hundreds of wild animals for company. She details the logistics of housing and caring for a literal boatload of animals: the dung that would have to be shoveled out each day, the stores of food needed to feed the animals. She writes about what the extended captivity is like for creatures accustomed to roaming the earth freely and describes what it does to their eating patterns, their health, their spirits.
The animals aren’t the only creatures that must adjust to a whole new way of life. Noah and his family have troubles of their own, which extend beyond the obvious challenge of caring for all the Earth’s species. The fear, stress, and uncertainty take a toll on the family, driving wedges between spouses and sowing seeds of doubt and distrust. Sebah, though not directly part of this action, observes all from her hiding spot and serves as a great lens through which to view the events of the book.
As much as I enjoyed the in-depth study of life on the ark, there were a few things that turned me off. The fact that the book is set in Biblical times, when cleanliness and hygiene were not top priorities, resulted in some scenes that triggered my gag reflex. Sebah, living in the bowels of the ark with the animals, witnesses – and participates in – lots of nasty stuff, like eating bird eyeballs for hydration, picking through dung for seeds, squeezing lice and ticks, etc. There are also lengthy descriptions of bodily functions and, even more disturbingly, lots and lots of monkey sex. And monkey hand jobs. And monkey masturbation. Just way more about monkeys than I’d ever, ever want to know.
This – not the monkey sex specifically, but all of the details mentioned in the previous paragraph – is what kept Storm from earning a higher rating. It’s not just that these details made me squeamish (though that is the case); it’s more that the prevalence of these behaviors, which are second nature to Sebah, really emphasize how different she and I are from one another. The fact that Sebah is perfectly comfortable twisting the head off of a bird and then eating that bird raw made it difficult to forget that we were two very different people, both clearly products of our times and with little common ground.
Still, I do recommend giving Storm a try, particularly if you’re a fan of retellings. Napoli is a master of the genre, and I will never turn down a chance to read her work.
This review can also be found on my blog, Angela's Library.
Donna Jo Napoli’s novel Storm delves into this story of Noah’s Ark, looking at the events of the great flood from the point of view of Sebah, a fictional stowaway who survives the deluge by sneaking through one of the ark’s portholes. Sebah hides from Noah and his family, fearing she will be thrown overboard upon discovery. As she watches the family and animals go about their daily business, she realizes just how much the family’s faith will be tested by the trial and what it means to survive and begin again in a world that has been destroyed and made anew.
What I love about Napoli’s work is the way she takes a familiar story and makes you look at it a whole new way. Have you ever really considered what day-to-day life would be like trapped on an ark? Can you imagine the tedium? The strangeness of knowing your family are the only surviving members of the human race? Can you comprehend just how much rain it would take to destroy the planet? And, once the rain ends, do you have any idea just how long it would take for the water to recede enough for the world to be inhabitable again? Can you imagine what said world would look like?
These things never occurred to me before, but they certainly have to Napoli. She paints a very convincing picture of the minutia of living on an ark with no one but your inlaws and hundreds of wild animals for company. She details the logistics of housing and caring for a literal boatload of animals: the dung that would have to be shoveled out each day, the stores of food needed to feed the animals. She writes about what the extended captivity is like for creatures accustomed to roaming the earth freely and describes what it does to their eating patterns, their health, their spirits.
The animals aren’t the only creatures that must adjust to a whole new way of life. Noah and his family have troubles of their own, which extend beyond the obvious challenge of caring for all the Earth’s species. The fear, stress, and uncertainty take a toll on the family, driving wedges between spouses and sowing seeds of doubt and distrust. Sebah, though not directly part of this action, observes all from her hiding spot and serves as a great lens through which to view the events of the book.
As much as I enjoyed the in-depth study of life on the ark, there were a few things that turned me off. The fact that the book is set in Biblical times, when cleanliness and hygiene were not top priorities, resulted in some scenes that triggered my gag reflex. Sebah, living in the bowels of the ark with the animals, witnesses – and participates in – lots of nasty stuff, like eating bird eyeballs for hydration, picking through dung for seeds, squeezing lice and ticks, etc. There are also lengthy descriptions of bodily functions and, even more disturbingly, lots and lots of monkey sex. And monkey hand jobs. And monkey masturbation. Just way more about monkeys than I’d ever, ever want to know.
This – not the monkey sex specifically, but all of the details mentioned in the previous paragraph – is what kept Storm from earning a higher rating. It’s not just that these details made me squeamish (though that is the case); it’s more that the prevalence of these behaviors, which are second nature to Sebah, really emphasize how different she and I are from one another. The fact that Sebah is perfectly comfortable twisting the head off of a bird and then eating that bird raw made it difficult to forget that we were two very different people, both clearly products of our times and with little common ground.
Still, I do recommend giving Storm a try, particularly if you’re a fan of retellings. Napoli is a master of the genre, and I will never turn down a chance to read her work.
This review can also be found on my blog, Angela's Library.
May 11, 2014
I thought this was an excellent book, but I think it might be misunderstood by readers.
This is a retelling of the story of Noah with modern language. Other modifications are imagined conversations and scenarios set in the appropriate time (the third millennium BC) and place (the land of Canaan).
Sebah (later called Shebah), 16, is a Canaanite farmer, and in spite of her lack of religious devotion, is a good and spiritual being, who loves and appreciates all of nature. When the torrential rains start, she takes her pet kit fox "Screamer" and manages to escape the rising waters by climbing higher and higher, finding refuge in a huge cedar tree. She is joined by a village boy, Aban, and after a tense beginning they come to an understanding about helping to take care of each other.
By day 24, Aban is dying, and too weak to act when they see a huge ark float through the roiling waters near their raft they made from cedar branches. Aban insists that Sebah climb the rope into the ark and live, for both of them.
Sebah hides out in a cage with Screamer, already occupied by a pair of very intelligent bonobos (these are small chimpanzees) that Sebah names Queen and The Male; two aardvarks; and two duikers. She conceals herself under the straw whenever the members of Noah’s family come down to her deck to feed the animals, and this is how she learns the names of the animals as well as getting to “know” Noah’s family.
As time passes, she sees that the animals are going crazy pent up in their small cages, and at night, she figures out a way to let them run around on the deck for a while undiscovered before getting them back in their cages. Soon she is assisted by Bash, another stowaway who is hiding on top of the ark.
After Sebah is discovered by one of the wives, she goes to join Bash atop the ark, because Noah is determined, by what he considers to be his instructions from God, only to let those he selected to survive leave the ark alive. Bash is especially important to Sebah now; she is carrying Aban’s baby.
Discussion: Sebah is a wonderful character. She is brave, resourceful, and optimistic, and doesn’t back down for anyone or anything. She is the sun in the endless rain:
"…all at once I realize something: It’s stupid to be sad. That’s the sum of it. I have to find something good to do. Something that brings me hope. That’s the secret now - the secret to surviving on the ark. Maybe it’s the secret to surviving anywhere. I don’t believe in Noah’s god, but I do believe what Noah said. We must all do what we can.”
And Sebah - determined - finds way to ensure that the new earth will be a better place.
The author has run up against a good deal of negative reader response by daring to portray Noah’s family as “dysfunctional” (as if the Bible didn’t do that already), and discussing the sexual nature of animals (as if that is unnatural). [It should be noted that the bonobo, the closest living relative to humans, is known for its high levels of sexual behavior; but this activity has many functions including stress reduction.] Part of the message of this book is the effect of captivity and stress on animals (and people), and it is, in my opinion, an excellent piece of exegesis on the story, speculating on what it would be like in the ark for the people and the animals to be cooped up and living in fear for that long.
I suspect that some readers might be attracted to this book thinking it will be “Christian fiction” (even though, well, it's based on the Old Testament, but never mind), or at least, that it might offer some sort of religious gratification. This is not the kind of book it is at all, but it does adhere pretty much to the original story (if anything, portraying Noah and his family a bit more sympathetically than in Genesis). Sebah is one of the best female role models ever, taking charge of her own fate, and doing her bit to contribute to the good of humanity.
Evaluation: This is a terrific book, but one shouldn't approach it with expectations of religious affirmation in the typical sense. It is a story about survival and love, the sanctity of living things, and the rewards of recognizing and respecting that sanctity. Highly recommended!
This is a retelling of the story of Noah with modern language. Other modifications are imagined conversations and scenarios set in the appropriate time (the third millennium BC) and place (the land of Canaan).
Sebah (later called Shebah), 16, is a Canaanite farmer, and in spite of her lack of religious devotion, is a good and spiritual being, who loves and appreciates all of nature. When the torrential rains start, she takes her pet kit fox "Screamer" and manages to escape the rising waters by climbing higher and higher, finding refuge in a huge cedar tree. She is joined by a village boy, Aban, and after a tense beginning they come to an understanding about helping to take care of each other.
By day 24, Aban is dying, and too weak to act when they see a huge ark float through the roiling waters near their raft they made from cedar branches. Aban insists that Sebah climb the rope into the ark and live, for both of them.
Sebah hides out in a cage with Screamer, already occupied by a pair of very intelligent bonobos (these are small chimpanzees) that Sebah names Queen and The Male; two aardvarks; and two duikers. She conceals herself under the straw whenever the members of Noah’s family come down to her deck to feed the animals, and this is how she learns the names of the animals as well as getting to “know” Noah’s family.
As time passes, she sees that the animals are going crazy pent up in their small cages, and at night, she figures out a way to let them run around on the deck for a while undiscovered before getting them back in their cages. Soon she is assisted by Bash, another stowaway who is hiding on top of the ark.
After Sebah is discovered by one of the wives, she goes to join Bash atop the ark, because Noah is determined, by what he considers to be his instructions from God, only to let those he selected to survive leave the ark alive. Bash is especially important to Sebah now; she is carrying Aban’s baby.
Discussion: Sebah is a wonderful character. She is brave, resourceful, and optimistic, and doesn’t back down for anyone or anything. She is the sun in the endless rain:
"…all at once I realize something: It’s stupid to be sad. That’s the sum of it. I have to find something good to do. Something that brings me hope. That’s the secret now - the secret to surviving on the ark. Maybe it’s the secret to surviving anywhere. I don’t believe in Noah’s god, but I do believe what Noah said. We must all do what we can.”
And Sebah - determined - finds way to ensure that the new earth will be a better place.
The author has run up against a good deal of negative reader response by daring to portray Noah’s family as “dysfunctional” (as if the Bible didn’t do that already), and discussing the sexual nature of animals (as if that is unnatural). [It should be noted that the bonobo, the closest living relative to humans, is known for its high levels of sexual behavior; but this activity has many functions including stress reduction.] Part of the message of this book is the effect of captivity and stress on animals (and people), and it is, in my opinion, an excellent piece of exegesis on the story, speculating on what it would be like in the ark for the people and the animals to be cooped up and living in fear for that long.
I suspect that some readers might be attracted to this book thinking it will be “Christian fiction” (even though, well, it's based on the Old Testament, but never mind), or at least, that it might offer some sort of religious gratification. This is not the kind of book it is at all, but it does adhere pretty much to the original story (if anything, portraying Noah and his family a bit more sympathetically than in Genesis). Sebah is one of the best female role models ever, taking charge of her own fate, and doing her bit to contribute to the good of humanity.
Evaluation: This is a terrific book, but one shouldn't approach it with expectations of religious affirmation in the typical sense. It is a story about survival and love, the sanctity of living things, and the rewards of recognizing and respecting that sanctity. Highly recommended!
June 21, 2017
Noah. It's a classic and powerful story of a man and his family's sacrifice to save mankind through the arm of God. I expected something moving, for my eyes to flood with a thousand salty tears as a young girl finds a faith and cause to believe in. Instead I was splashed. The type of splash you get when you get a full-face of salty sea water in your eyes.
That type of splash
Napoli offered a good premise. A young girl (as my grandpa bluntly put it when seeing the cover) "hitch-hiking on the ark." At first, it started fine. Sebah enjoys her life, even with it's restrictions, before a storm wipes away all that she knows. She's left alone with her cat, in a watery landscape, confused, sad, absolutely helpless. Then Aban shows up.
"You're my woman now."
My teeth clench. "I'm not looking for a husband."
"You need protection. I'll protect you." .... "You're my woman. Or else I'll kill that kitten of yours."
We're supposed to love this guy? Nothing more endearing than killing a kitten. Keeping it classy, Aban. Keeping it classy.
He saves her eventually and after he confesses that he's watched over her for weeks he's suddenly worthy to be her husband. Like you just can't save a girl and protect each other out of compassion, no, you have to marry her. I get that this was an new culture, and I get that men offered protection and were breadwinners within the home, but like mentioned in the book--- Change means adaptation. I can guarantee you, if the world was suddenly flooded, my first thought wouldn't be to marry someone.
It would be to stay alive.
But a guy with a club comes in handy.
She... "marries" him I guess? And they both consummate the marriage.
... How about you guys populate this world when you're not being chased by predators???? Save your energy for escaping another boar/hyena so your kids can actually have a chance??
They work together to build a raft, and yada yada he makes her feel special and yada yada he gets sick and yada yada he's like "save yourself and get on the ark." I felt a distinct lack of caring on my end about their relationship in general. He actually ends up getting her pregnant which I figured out the first time the monkey rubbed her belly on the boat. *exasperated sigh*
And what was it with the monkeys????
Constantly mating... like.... what?
Apparently it was this whole big thing where Noah and his family didn't want any of the creatures to mate, but the monkeys did it anyway out of "spite," with Sebah's full support. (I felt like this was a totally unnecessary subplot that did nothing but feed my inner disgust) It even got to the point where Ham's wife went to them to show her how they could be so intimate without having little monkey-baby's running around the boat so she could preserve her marriage.
I sat there wondering when enough was enough.
I decided that was the line.
Wish I would've dropped it sooner.
It was awful.
Excuse me as a purge this mess from my mind.
That type of splash
Napoli offered a good premise. A young girl (as my grandpa bluntly put it when seeing the cover) "hitch-hiking on the ark." At first, it started fine. Sebah enjoys her life, even with it's restrictions, before a storm wipes away all that she knows. She's left alone with her cat, in a watery landscape, confused, sad, absolutely helpless. Then Aban shows up.
"You're my woman now."
My teeth clench. "I'm not looking for a husband."
"You need protection. I'll protect you." .... "You're my woman. Or else I'll kill that kitten of yours."
We're supposed to love this guy? Nothing more endearing than killing a kitten. Keeping it classy, Aban. Keeping it classy.
He saves her eventually and after he confesses that he's watched over her for weeks he's suddenly worthy to be her husband. Like you just can't save a girl and protect each other out of compassion, no, you have to marry her. I get that this was an new culture, and I get that men offered protection and were breadwinners within the home, but like mentioned in the book--- Change means adaptation. I can guarantee you, if the world was suddenly flooded, my first thought wouldn't be to marry someone.
It would be to stay alive.
But a guy with a club comes in handy.
She... "marries" him I guess? And they both consummate the marriage.
... How about you guys populate this world when you're not being chased by predators???? Save your energy for escaping another boar/hyena so your kids can actually have a chance??
They work together to build a raft, and yada yada he makes her feel special and yada yada he gets sick and yada yada he's like "save yourself and get on the ark." I felt a distinct lack of caring on my end about their relationship in general. He actually ends up getting her pregnant which I figured out the first time the monkey rubbed her belly on the boat. *exasperated sigh*
And what was it with the monkeys????
Constantly mating... like.... what?
Apparently it was this whole big thing where Noah and his family didn't want any of the creatures to mate, but the monkeys did it anyway out of "spite," with Sebah's full support. (I felt like this was a totally unnecessary subplot that did nothing but feed my inner disgust) It even got to the point where Ham's wife went to them to show her how they could be so intimate without having little monkey-baby's running around the boat so she could preserve her marriage.
I sat there wondering when enough was enough.
I decided that was the line.
Wish I would've dropped it sooner.
It was awful.
Excuse me as a purge this mess from my mind.
April 9, 2024
Storm is truly one of the most bizarre books I have read in recent memory. I'm afraid, however, that I'm going to have to mark most of this review for spoilers. If you so choose to read this book, I don't want to ruin it all for you, but lord help me, I have to rant about it somewhere.
First, I picked this book up because I loved Donna Jo Napoli when I was a middle-grade reader. Most of her books are re-tellings of fairytales, myths, and the like. My favorites were Sirena, about a siren who takes care of a Greek sailor on his way home from Troy (no, not THAT Greek sailor), and Zel, a Rapunzel retelling. I also enjoy the "biblical retelling genre," which has been popular for quite some time (the most famous example being The Red Tent).
Storm opens with our heroine, Sebah, a sixteen-year-old girl from a village in Mesopotamia, shucking peas and musing about being old enough for marriage but not married because of liberal modern-day reasons (I flagged this as a weird fact to open with and you should too). Immediately, practically on page one, it begins to rain. Sebah goes off in search of her younger brothers but gets swept up in the torrential downpour. Luckily she's not alone, she has her kitten, who is endearingly named Screamer. Soon, Sebah is battling the floods and in search of high ground. All of this happens within the first, like 10 pages. Donna Jo Napoli is not going to waste your time before introducing the biblical flood!
Alright, as promised, I'm going to describe the weird plot next, so spoilers below! Do not click! I am warning you!
Overall, I found this book to be wildly underwhelming, given the subject matter. Sebah isn't very interesting, and I'm so curious as to why Napoli decided to write her protagonist like that. Even the plot is underwhelming. We're dealing with a worldwide flood, written about in many, many ancient cultures globally, and yet... it's so flat.
And, this book was, annoyingly, written entirely in present tense, which I personally find so tedious to read.
2.5 stars rounded up for its surprising and unprecedented weirdness. I will never stop thinking about this book. Why does it exist?! Who is this for??
First, I picked this book up because I loved Donna Jo Napoli when I was a middle-grade reader. Most of her books are re-tellings of fairytales, myths, and the like. My favorites were Sirena, about a siren who takes care of a Greek sailor on his way home from Troy (no, not THAT Greek sailor), and Zel, a Rapunzel retelling. I also enjoy the "biblical retelling genre," which has been popular for quite some time (the most famous example being The Red Tent).
Storm opens with our heroine, Sebah, a sixteen-year-old girl from a village in Mesopotamia, shucking peas and musing about being old enough for marriage but not married because of liberal modern-day reasons (I flagged this as a weird fact to open with and you should too). Immediately, practically on page one, it begins to rain. Sebah goes off in search of her younger brothers but gets swept up in the torrential downpour. Luckily she's not alone, she has her kitten, who is endearingly named Screamer. Soon, Sebah is battling the floods and in search of high ground. All of this happens within the first, like 10 pages. Donna Jo Napoli is not going to waste your time before introducing the biblical flood!
Alright, as promised, I'm going to describe the weird plot next, so spoilers below! Do not click! I am warning you!
Overall, I found this book to be wildly underwhelming, given the subject matter. Sebah isn't very interesting, and I'm so curious as to why Napoli decided to write her protagonist like that. Even the plot is underwhelming. We're dealing with a worldwide flood, written about in many, many ancient cultures globally, and yet... it's so flat.
And, this book was, annoyingly, written entirely in present tense, which I personally find so tedious to read.
2.5 stars rounded up for its surprising and unprecedented weirdness. I will never stop thinking about this book. Why does it exist?! Who is this for??
October 9, 2014
Sebah is wrapping seed pods when the heavens open and it starts to rain. She leaves her mother and goes out into the storm to try and find her three younger brothers, but they are lost, she is lost, her home is lost, in a matter of moments. She manages to survive, along with a baby swamp cat, until she is found by a fisherman's son, who takes the upper hand immediately. Sebah agrees to be with him, and they embark on a tenuous attempt at survival in the top of a cedar tree as the waters roar around them. The building of a raft ensures Sebah's survival, (but not Aban's), as she finds an ark, and is rescued, improbably, by two bonobo monkeys. And so begins her long, long incarceration on a huge boat filled with animals, and humans who do not know she is there. Napoli tells a good story, but not much is glossed over. Gritty realism brings this Genesis story to life. It should be noted that sexuality and childbirth are frankly depicted, though never graphically, so this book is best for older teen readers. Similar to Not the End of the World by McCaughrean, but for an older audience.
January 3, 2023
Honestly I finished this book because I don't like leaving books unfinished. There were some parts of this plot that were interesting, and that's what helped me make it to the end, but for the most part, this book was frustrating, weird, and really out of left field. The narration was weird and half the time I didn't know what the main character was talking about - like in describing other people, herself, or animals. There were a lot of holes in the plot that came out of nowhere and didn't tie into anything. It was a slow read and there were a lot of plot pieces in the end that never were resolved. The ending also happened very abruptly. I ended the book and turned the page for the next chapter and there wasn't one which was odd because it felt like there were a lot more things to be resolved. Not a fan of this writing style of vague story-telling and the retelling of Noah's ark left a lot to be desired.
February 10, 2017
a different spin on Noah's ark seen thru the eyes of a sixteen-year-old stowaway named Sebah who
with her companion, a boy named Aban float on a raft till she is gets on the ark there she hides out with chimpanzees she calls Queen and the male
Noah and his family do play a small part in the tale but not as much as i would like
i found this book strange there was a few good parts dealing with Noah's family but i found the main character annoying and she talked about herself in the third person which i don't like
and all the mating talk was off pouting to me
the killing of animals and eating them raw was kinda hard to read for me to
it was choppy and hard to understand in places
but its was a ok book to read
with her companion, a boy named Aban float on a raft till she is gets on the ark there she hides out with chimpanzees she calls Queen and the male
Noah and his family do play a small part in the tale but not as much as i would like
i found this book strange there was a few good parts dealing with Noah's family but i found the main character annoying and she talked about herself in the third person which i don't like
and all the mating talk was off pouting to me
the killing of animals and eating them raw was kinda hard to read for me to
it was choppy and hard to understand in places
but its was a ok book to read
August 28, 2014
So, I like Donna Jo Napoli's writing. A lot actually. But I just couldn't really get into this one. If my mom had popped up behind me while I was reading this book, I would have flung it across the room in embarrassment while struggling to explain anything she might have read. There's nothing really directly obscene or offensive in it at all, but there's just this weird atmosphere that made me queasy. Which is a personal problem I guess.
October 26, 2014
In some ways, this book reminded me of the Tom Hanks movie, Castaway. At first, I was unsure how a single character, alone, could make an interesting story. Yet, the story is captivating, and, in time, she does interact with others. The author takes the familiar Biblical text and adds the main character as a stowaway on Noah's ark. The story is a fun read...especially if you know a bit about bonobo animal behavior going in!
March 28, 2014
This novel has a beautiful voice, and setting is fabulous. Great to read a familiar story turned on it's head. The main character, a girl who sneaks onto Noah's ark, is brave, resourceful and tender. I loved her. Like the characters in the book, I got dreadfully tired of being on the ark, which I guess was the point.
July 23, 2014
I did not like this book. It was slow and sort of strange. The main character really bugged me and I did not like her personality. I liked her friendship with Nela. Maybe it was the time period and how women were treated and thought of themselves during that time, but it drove me crazy. I liked Napoli's book Zel but this was nothing like it and I did not enjoy it.
September 24, 2022
It was an average, good books. To be honest I had no expectations going into this book. For the most part I stay away from these kinds of books, but this one was great. It was unlike anything I have ever read, and kept me intrigued until the end.
January 1, 2014
See School Library Journal for review
May 4, 2014
Noah's Ark stories are weird, they make me feel sorry for the animals, and this one is no different.
July 16, 2014
Well that's some valuable reading time I'll never get back.
The first 1/3 was decent. The rest...not so much.
The first 1/3 was decent. The rest...not so much.
February 19, 2017
Terrible. Couldn't even get 1/5th of the way in.
June 29, 2023
The story of Noah in the Old Testament has always troubled me, as I grapple with the implications of a worldwide flood. However, in the young adult novel Storm (Simon & Schuster, 2014) by Donna Jo Napoli, the author takes a creative approach by envisioning the experience of a teenage stowaway named Sebah on Noah’s Ark. Through Sebah’s eyes, we witness the sudden deluge that lasts for 40 days, forcing her to seek refuge first in a tree, then on a makeshift raft, and ultimately aboard Noah’s Ark. Unlike Noah and his family, who are portrayed as unkind, Sebah finds solace and companionship among the animals on the ark, making her a likable and resourceful stowaway.
While biblical purists may take issue with the novel’s portrayal of Noah’s personality and the irreligious aspects of his family, as well as the concept of a stowaway, I personally interpret the Bible more symbolically. From this perspective, the novel’s exploration of how the flood might have unfolded is both entertaining and plausible. Sebah’s innovative ideas and unwavering determination to improve her circumstances add depth to her character and offer a fresh take on the well-known story. I enjoyed her relationship with the animals as well as the additional narrative twists that surprised me as the novel progressed.
With tame sexual content, Storm is most appropriate for adults and young adults, not middle grade readers. Overall, Storm provides a captivating and thought-provoking look into the Noah narrative, highlighting the emotional and practical challenges faced by a young person caught in the midst of such a cataclysmic event.
On the blog: https://reviews.rebeccareid.com/storm...
While biblical purists may take issue with the novel’s portrayal of Noah’s personality and the irreligious aspects of his family, as well as the concept of a stowaway, I personally interpret the Bible more symbolically. From this perspective, the novel’s exploration of how the flood might have unfolded is both entertaining and plausible. Sebah’s innovative ideas and unwavering determination to improve her circumstances add depth to her character and offer a fresh take on the well-known story. I enjoyed her relationship with the animals as well as the additional narrative twists that surprised me as the novel progressed.
With tame sexual content, Storm is most appropriate for adults and young adults, not middle grade readers. Overall, Storm provides a captivating and thought-provoking look into the Noah narrative, highlighting the emotional and practical challenges faced by a young person caught in the midst of such a cataclysmic event.
On the blog: https://reviews.rebeccareid.com/storm...
March 6, 2021
I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this book. A fictionalized retelling of the Flood? Yes, please! It was fascinating to think about this event from a perspective outside of Genesis. The whole foundation of the story is, “Ok, but what IF...” Is it absurd? Absolutely. Is it also entertaining and enthralling? Absolutely. Does it change my belief system? Absolutely not. (Though it did rattle my cage, so to speak, which was in itself an interesting experience.) I finished this before bed and woke up still thinking about it and wishing for a sequel telling us how the characters survived and thrived after they got off the Ark. I still have more questions! 😁 Donna Jo Napoli is easily one of my favorite storytellers and this one did not disappoint 👍
November 5, 2019
Love the way Donna Jo Napoli spins stories to help us see rote tales from a different perspective.
June 17, 2021
Just like the rains, this seemed to go on and on. The pace was just so slow. I liked the look at the impact such a long voyage in captivity would have had on everyone, but that was about it.
October 15, 2021
Soooo bad. Just awful. Riddled with inaccuracies and disgusting images.
May 27, 2023
Well Done
A very unusual book. I found it stirred up thoughts about how it must have been in that ark. I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
A very unusual book. I found it stirred up thoughts about how it must have been in that ark. I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
February 25, 2024
A retelling of Noah and the flood, told from the perspective of a resourceful stowaway, this novel is utterly believable with an engaging angle.
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