River Friendly, River Wild

by Jane Kurtz, Neil Brennan (Illustrator)

On TV we watch our city where people navigate the river-streets in any way they can....

"Look." Max points. "it's Sarah's house."

All I see is roof.

In searing personal poems, Jane Kurtz explores what it's like to struggle through a flood and pull your life together afterward. Inspired by Kurtz's own flood experience, this tale is realistic and unforgettable. Not just a moving story of one girl's courage, River Friendly, River Wild is a tribute to everyone who's ever faced great loss.

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books

40 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2000

About the author

Jane Kurtz was born in Portland, Oregon, but when she was two years old, her parents moved to Ethiopia. Jane grew up in Maji, a small town in the southwest corner of the country.
Since there were no televisions, radios, or movies, her memories are of climbing mountains, wading in rivers by the waterfalls, listening to stories, and making up her own stories, which she and her sisters acted out for days at a time.


That love of nature has recently inspired her to write books about loving the Earth--such as WHAT DO THEY DO WITH ALL THAT POO? and PLANET JUPITER.

Jane has published more than 40 books, fiction, nonfiction, picture books, novels for young readers, and ready-to-reads. Some are based on her childhood in Ethiopia. Some draw on her own children, such as ANNA WAS HERE, a novel for young readers that asks life's big questions about pain and disaster--and offers a few puny answers.

Since her childhood in Ethiopia, Jane has lived in Illinois, Colorado, North Dakota, Kansas and--now--back in Portland, Oregon.

Reviews

[Wyatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personnel response: My response on River Friendly River Wildwas that honestly I would've never read the book but I read this short poem story to my 6 year old cousin and I thought the content was appropriate for her age and school learning ability level. Right away when I saw the cover of the book I thought it would be about a river and possibly be a sad story.
Plot: The family who just moved into their new home love their new home and are loving the location. At times like most families, their family would fight all night and none of the family would get along. Well after just a couple of week in their new home they wake up to see the worst of the worst happen. There was a flood from the river that rained all night and the water was covered by the whole city and just when the girl/daughter in the book realizes her cat went missing the family started to fight to find out where the cat went. So when all this happened they were evacuated and when they returned home they saws their house demolished by cranes because their house was flooded over and was not livable anymore. So when they showed up that same day again they saw her cat and she was the happiest person alive in that moment.
Recommendations: I personally recommend that only 4to 8 year olds read the book but anyone over the age of 4 is capable of reading this book. If you are a sensible person you may not want to read this book because of the cat running away and the flood destroying their house.

[Erin Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

River Friendly, River Wild by Jane Kurtz is about a young girl who loses her home due to a flood and how she has to piece her life as it once was back together. This book is a great representation of poetry for children because it still makes sense to them while telling a realistic story of courage. It is important to keep poetry in the classroom because it helps to develop language skills and encourages readers to dive deeper in the meaning along with their understanding of a piece of text and enhances higher level thinking. This book also has meaningful visual elements because the illustrator watched the tone of the book with the hues of the illustrations. There is not much texture because the paint strokes were larger, but there is lots of blending when it comes to the river.

[Ashleigh Sanford · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first grader got this in his school library. We read it together and he liked the pictures but it was a little too heavy for him (but I think a child going through a similar situation might be more engaged). I LOVED it. It is a sad story, but very beautifully told. Without spoilers: it is the author’s experience with natural disaster and tragedy as a young girl, expressed through poetry. “Mad” was particularly impactful for me.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a book of poems based off of a natural disaster. It is all about a girl and her family during a big flood. They are forced to leave their home and left to deal with the aftermath. Media:Oil Glazes

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lyrical, poignant, powerful.

[Kaylynn Johnsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful, true poetic account of the 1997 flooding of the Grand Forks River in North Dakota is warm and moving.

[Nanny B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poems written after flooding in North Dakota. Based on true event.

[Langlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

River Friendly, River Wild by Jane Kurtz is an illustrated poetry story that depicts the feelings of a young girl who is experiencing loss as her family's home is destroyed by a flood. Jane Kurtz uses her own childhood experiences to portray the array of feelings she felt when she experienced this loss. The description and detail of this little girls feelings is sure to grab the readers and listeners attention. I included this book on my favorites shelf because it contained a lot of emotion, and I can see myself using it in a classroom for a variety of grades. For primary grades, teachers can use this story in lessons that involve identifying and describing characters feelings and how the characters feelings change throughout the story based on events that take place. For the intermediate grades, teachers can utilize this book to introduce poetry and the different themes and characteristics of poetry.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book story is about surviving a flood told from the author's personal experience. Soft, blended color illustrations add to the story. The story is told with a series of poems that help date and give background. Titles include: Blizzard, Sandbagging, Fleeing, and Cleanup. A lost kitten adds to the story. Great book for elementary school aged children. Older reader will also enjoy this story.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series of poems articulates loss due to a natural disaster from the child’s point of view, and really could apply to Katrina or Ike or even the fires in Australia, because the progression of sensations is true. There are lovely moments: “The machines have names like Komatsu and Case, Cat and Deere. They call to each other in high yellow beeps”; “her eyes are fat with tears”. There’s no melodrama here; emotions are perfectly sequenced.

[Inger Yoder · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a collections of events in the authors written as poems. It is very interesting and I would definitely use it during a poem lesson in the classroom. I would use this book in upper elementary as some of the words might be difficult for younger readers.

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reflections of the author on flooding near her childhood home in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Topics: preparing for the flood, temporary shelter, fire, loss, reuniting.