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The Disaster Days
Hatchet meets The Babysitters Club in this epic and thrilling survival story about pushing oneself to the limit in the face of a crisis. We were all alone, in a shaken and shattered house, in the dark. And I was in charge. Hannah Steele loves living on Pelling, a tiny island near Seattle. She's always felt totally safe there. So when she's asked to babysit after school one day, it's no big deal. Zoe and Oscar are her next-door neighbors, and Hannah just took a babysitting class, which she's pretty sure makes her an expert. She isn't even worried that she left her inhaler at home. Then the shaking begins. The terrifying earthquake only lasts four minutes, but it changes everything―damaging the house, knocking out the power, and making cell service nonexistent. Even worse, the ferry and the bridge connecting the kids to help―and their parents―are both blocked, which means they're stranded alone. And Hannah's in charge as things go from bad to worse. Praise for The Disaster Days : "A realistic, engrossing survival story that's perfect for aspiring babysitters and fans of John Macfarlane's Stormstruck! , Sherry Shahan's Ice Island , or Wesley King's A World Below ."― School Library Journal "The strength of this steadily paced novel that stretches over four days of a scary disaster scenario is that Hannah doesn't figure everything out; she stumbles, doubts, and struggles throughout it all."―The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "Fans of survival thrillers in the vein of Gary Paulsen's Hatchet will enjoy this tense, honest tale of bravery...an excellent (and refreshingly not didactic) teaching tool on natural-disaster preparedness."― Booklist "The relentless progression of a variety of disaster scenarios will keep readers turning pages…equally suspenseful and informative."― School Library Connection "Behrens uses immersive details and situations effectively viewed from Hannah's perspective to create a suspenseful, vivid story filled with lessons about responsibility and overcoming adversity."― Publishers Weekly The Disaster Days is a perfect…
304 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2019
109 people are currently reading
768 people want to read
About the author
Rebecca Behrens
6 books143 followersRebecca Behrens is the award-winning author of three critically acclaimed middle-grade novels that explore famous historical figures and fascinating places: When Audrey Met Alice, Summer of Lost and Found, and The Last Grand Adventure. Her thrillingly realistic survival story The Disaster Days is a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Children’s Book, and an ILA Teachers’ Choices selection. Her latest middle-grade adventure, Alone in the Woods, is now available. Rebecca grew up in Wisconsin, studied in Chicago, and now lives with her husband in New York City. You can visit her online to learn more about her books at www.rebeccabehrens.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 135 reviews
December 15, 2021
Nothing was remarkable that morning, except the postcard-perfect view of Mount Rainier. Most of the time, clouds and fog hid it, but the volcano was always there, watching us, even when we couldn’t see it. We forgot that we were living right on top of a fault zone.
Thirteen year old Hannah lives on a small island in Puget Sound (it's actually a very sparsely-populated islet of a larger island, all of which is rather confusingly considered a suburb of Seattle). She's concerned about the usual things for her age, especially the changing friendship dynamics with her best friend. But after school she's babysitting at her neighbors, the Matlocks. Although it's only her second time babysitting, she's expecting an easy evening - well, about as easy as it gets with Zoe (5th grade) and Oscar (3rd grade). The last thing anyone expected was a 9.0 earthquake.
The jolt was so strange, and sudden, that at first, I thought only I had experienced it... I focused on the room around me. I held my breath, looking and listening. Everything seemed fine…
Then the shaking started.
This is a very compelling read - I unintentionally finished it in just a day. It's also considered middle-grade reading, but I found the situation pretty intense and suggest parents might want to read it before or with their kids. Since all the adults are away (not on the island), Hannah is on her own with these kids and... well, accidents happen, which really raises the stakes. (Maybe it's the parent in me, but I found it quite stressful.) And while it's rather intense and scary, I thought the writing was a bit odd. To me it felt "mechanical" or maybe business-like (not sure how else to describe it), but I think it's similar in style to other real life survival books like Hatchet. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed it. Well... as much as you enjoy a stressful book!
Incidentally, this situation - if you live in the Pacific Northwest, anyway - is entirely real. Everyone talks about San Andreas but the Cascadia Fault is actually much more dangerous, and a 9.0 or slightly bigger is expected at the next rupture - which, of course, could be "any day." For adult readers (especially those living in the Pacific Northwest) I highly recommend Cascadia's Fault by Jerry Thompson or his video documentary "Shockwave: Surviving North America's Biggest Disaster" (you can stream it on Amazon). Pretty scary stuff.
Thirteen year old Hannah lives on a small island in Puget Sound (it's actually a very sparsely-populated islet of a larger island, all of which is rather confusingly considered a suburb of Seattle). She's concerned about the usual things for her age, especially the changing friendship dynamics with her best friend. But after school she's babysitting at her neighbors, the Matlocks. Although it's only her second time babysitting, she's expecting an easy evening - well, about as easy as it gets with Zoe (5th grade) and Oscar (3rd grade). The last thing anyone expected was a 9.0 earthquake.
The jolt was so strange, and sudden, that at first, I thought only I had experienced it... I focused on the room around me. I held my breath, looking and listening. Everything seemed fine…
Then the shaking started.
This is a very compelling read - I unintentionally finished it in just a day. It's also considered middle-grade reading, but I found the situation pretty intense and suggest parents might want to read it before or with their kids. Since all the adults are away (not on the island), Hannah is on her own with these kids and... well, accidents happen, which really raises the stakes. (Maybe it's the parent in me, but I found it quite stressful.) And while it's rather intense and scary, I thought the writing was a bit odd. To me it felt "mechanical" or maybe business-like (not sure how else to describe it), but I think it's similar in style to other real life survival books like Hatchet. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed it. Well... as much as you enjoy a stressful book!
Incidentally, this situation - if you live in the Pacific Northwest, anyway - is entirely real. Everyone talks about San Andreas but the Cascadia Fault is actually much more dangerous, and a 9.0 or slightly bigger is expected at the next rupture - which, of course, could be "any day." For adult readers (especially those living in the Pacific Northwest) I highly recommend Cascadia's Fault by Jerry Thompson or his video documentary "Shockwave: Surviving North America's Biggest Disaster" (you can stream it on Amazon). Pretty scary stuff.
January 22, 2020
I loved this. exciting from start to finish, truly frightening. I do love reading disaster stories and this one delivers in every way. May this 9.0 earthquake never happen in real life.
October 10, 2019
Thirteen-year-old, Hannah, is asked to babysit her two young neighbors, Zoe and Oscar. It’s only Hannah’s second time ever babysitting, but she just finished a babysitting course and nothing bad ever really happens in her quiet little neighborhood, tucked away on tiny Pelling Island. But then disaster strikes when a big earthquake hits, shutting down the ferry and bridge, meaning Hannah and her two charges are cut off from their parents and help. Injuries, a dangerously wrecked house, and a depleting food supply quickly make things even worse and scarier. How will Hannah and the kids survive?
Rebecca Behrens’ The Disaster Days is a compelling and empowering middle-grade disaster story that will have readers on the edge of their seats and breathless!
With its utterly gripping story, and Behrens mastery of suspense, emotion, and earthquake disaster knowledge, The Disaster Days is an unputdownable page-turner. Behrens has clearly done her earthquake research, as every aspect of Hannah’s story feels authentic and real. Every heart-wrenching and lump-in-your-throat moment of fear, panic, and doubt is powerfully felt, and every heartwarming moment of triumph, obstacles overcome, and teamwork and sweetness between the characters will be relished and celebrated by readers.
Readers will easily connect with the three engaging, excellently developed young characters. Through all their likable qualities and flaws, victories and mistakes, Hannah, Zoe, and Oscar feel incredibly real...and by the end of the book, they’ll feel like long lost friends to readers.
The Disaster Days will take young readers on an unforgettable, emotionally charged journey that will encourage, inspire, and educate. A suspenseful, spectacularly crafted survival story!
Rebecca Behrens’ The Disaster Days is a compelling and empowering middle-grade disaster story that will have readers on the edge of their seats and breathless!
With its utterly gripping story, and Behrens mastery of suspense, emotion, and earthquake disaster knowledge, The Disaster Days is an unputdownable page-turner. Behrens has clearly done her earthquake research, as every aspect of Hannah’s story feels authentic and real. Every heart-wrenching and lump-in-your-throat moment of fear, panic, and doubt is powerfully felt, and every heartwarming moment of triumph, obstacles overcome, and teamwork and sweetness between the characters will be relished and celebrated by readers.
Readers will easily connect with the three engaging, excellently developed young characters. Through all their likable qualities and flaws, victories and mistakes, Hannah, Zoe, and Oscar feel incredibly real...and by the end of the book, they’ll feel like long lost friends to readers.
The Disaster Days will take young readers on an unforgettable, emotionally charged journey that will encourage, inspire, and educate. A suspenseful, spectacularly crafted survival story!
May 24, 2023
The Disaster Days
By Rebecca Behrens
This is definitely a book I would give 5/5 stars. When I took it from the library I wasn't that excited to read it. I read all my graphic novels first and didn’t even start it in the two weeks that i had it. But when I did, I finished it that same evening. It was definitely a very fast read and was very interesting. It was a realistic fiction book but was also an adventure book because you don’t always have to go anywhere for it to be an adventure. In this book however the characters did not choose to go on an adventure and instead tried everything to end it. The story was about a girl babysitting, when she and the kids experienced a major 9.0 scale earthquake. The house was shattered and they had to survive all sorts of things like hunger, thirst and even bears. The story was a bit scary at parts but that counts as another advantage for the author because it is only scary because she wrote with such description and detail that it really made me feel like I was in the story. In this story it also showed how important very basic things are which links to the global goals, health for all (3), zero hunger (2) and clean water (6). While the kids were alone they barely had any of these and almost died which makes you realise how hard it is for people who live like that on a daily basis. I think these goals are few of the ones that are really really important and I don’t want to live in a world where this actually happens. The global goals need to be achieved by 2030 (as planned) (More about the global goals here: https://www.globalgoals.org/ )
Doroteja Slimaite
By Rebecca Behrens
This is definitely a book I would give 5/5 stars. When I took it from the library I wasn't that excited to read it. I read all my graphic novels first and didn’t even start it in the two weeks that i had it. But when I did, I finished it that same evening. It was definitely a very fast read and was very interesting. It was a realistic fiction book but was also an adventure book because you don’t always have to go anywhere for it to be an adventure. In this book however the characters did not choose to go on an adventure and instead tried everything to end it. The story was about a girl babysitting, when she and the kids experienced a major 9.0 scale earthquake. The house was shattered and they had to survive all sorts of things like hunger, thirst and even bears. The story was a bit scary at parts but that counts as another advantage for the author because it is only scary because she wrote with such description and detail that it really made me feel like I was in the story. In this story it also showed how important very basic things are which links to the global goals, health for all (3), zero hunger (2) and clean water (6). While the kids were alone they barely had any of these and almost died which makes you realise how hard it is for people who live like that on a daily basis. I think these goals are few of the ones that are really really important and I don’t want to live in a world where this actually happens. The global goals need to be achieved by 2030 (as planned) (More about the global goals here: https://www.globalgoals.org/ )
Doroteja Slimaite
June 2, 2023
I bought this because my stepkid says she's interested in "end of the world"-type stories and this seemed like it might be an interesting read for her. Whenever I buy her books, I like to read them first just so I can talk to her about the story when she's done, hence why I have a lot of young adult novels on my goodreads shelf. I liked that this book had a local setting and was about a kid just about her age dealing with a natural disaster. This is not exactly an "end of the world" book but I think there is actually a LOT of value in a book like this for kids her age or even younger than she is. Personally I have been thinking a lot more lately about some light "doomsday prepping" just in case a situation arises where I might need a selection of things in one convenient place, and yes, living in the Pacific Northwest, seismic activity is high on my list of possible situations. This book does a really good job of preparing kids for disaster, including what the aftermath will look like, medical emergencies that could result, and how dire it can seem. It also helps teach them what will help them in these scenarios, especially if they happen to be alone without an adult when it happens. I really appreciated the way all this was explained in the book, and weirdly enough I became a little choked up during the final chapter.
October 3, 2021
Excellent YA story - ages 10+
June 10, 2023
I've read it three times and it still is such a great book
October 14, 2021
The Disaster Days GoodReads Review
2 out of 5 stars
I think this book starts out strong by setting up the story and letting you get to know the characters. The book is set on the fictional island of Pelling, which is near Seattle, and the protagonist is Hannah Steele, a thirteen year old asthmatic babysitter. She is babysitting Zoe and Oscar Matlock, when an earthquake hits. Both her parents, and the Matlock’s parents are gone and the phone and power lines are down. So she has no way of contacting the outside world. I think the concept is really strong, but the execution falls short.
After the earthquake hits, the story starts to be less believable. One reason is that she waits three days to go to her house. She knows that her house has lots of emergency supplies, and she believes that it is still standing because of her dad’s architectural expertise. Hannah repeatedly shows her confidence in her dad’s architecture skills, yet she still waits three days to try to go to her house. If they are worried about their parents coming back and missing them, they could just leave a note, and they would not be gone for long because their house is only three quarters of a mile away. Also there seems to be minimal damage to the Matlock’s house considering it is supposed to be a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. They are also on Pelling island, which is large enough to have its own middle school and downtown, yet we are supposed to believe they feel like they are completely isolated. Just because two sets of parents are gone doesn’t mean the entire island is abandoned. After they gather themselves and set up camp outside, Oscar goes and swings on the swingset. He somehow manages to break his arm because the swingset breaks. This comes off as a way to artificially create more conflict and extend the story. The fact that the wooden swing set was still standing after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake is also very convenient. When they eventually do decide to make the monumental trek of three quarter miles to Hannah’s house to get supplies, they find that her house has caved in, which makes some sense considering it is a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. I would maybe feel a little anxious about this situation, but this book has very little stakes, and I never felt like any of them were ever in any real mortal danger. After this the author just sticks on an ending out of nowhere. It seems like the author didn’t know how to end the story, so she just had Hannah’s mom come and rescue them. She somehow makes it out of Seattle after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake in three days because of some convenient circumstances.
Overall I would say this book is fine for younger kids that want a book with not a lot of stakes, if you are willing to overlook a few plot holes. If you are looking for anything more in a book I don’t think this is the book for you.
2 out of 5 stars
I think this book starts out strong by setting up the story and letting you get to know the characters. The book is set on the fictional island of Pelling, which is near Seattle, and the protagonist is Hannah Steele, a thirteen year old asthmatic babysitter. She is babysitting Zoe and Oscar Matlock, when an earthquake hits. Both her parents, and the Matlock’s parents are gone and the phone and power lines are down. So she has no way of contacting the outside world. I think the concept is really strong, but the execution falls short.
After the earthquake hits, the story starts to be less believable. One reason is that she waits three days to go to her house. She knows that her house has lots of emergency supplies, and she believes that it is still standing because of her dad’s architectural expertise. Hannah repeatedly shows her confidence in her dad’s architecture skills, yet she still waits three days to try to go to her house. If they are worried about their parents coming back and missing them, they could just leave a note, and they would not be gone for long because their house is only three quarters of a mile away. Also there seems to be minimal damage to the Matlock’s house considering it is supposed to be a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. They are also on Pelling island, which is large enough to have its own middle school and downtown, yet we are supposed to believe they feel like they are completely isolated. Just because two sets of parents are gone doesn’t mean the entire island is abandoned. After they gather themselves and set up camp outside, Oscar goes and swings on the swingset. He somehow manages to break his arm because the swingset breaks. This comes off as a way to artificially create more conflict and extend the story. The fact that the wooden swing set was still standing after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake is also very convenient. When they eventually do decide to make the monumental trek of three quarter miles to Hannah’s house to get supplies, they find that her house has caved in, which makes some sense considering it is a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. I would maybe feel a little anxious about this situation, but this book has very little stakes, and I never felt like any of them were ever in any real mortal danger. After this the author just sticks on an ending out of nowhere. It seems like the author didn’t know how to end the story, so she just had Hannah’s mom come and rescue them. She somehow makes it out of Seattle after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake in three days because of some convenient circumstances.
Overall I would say this book is fine for younger kids that want a book with not a lot of stakes, if you are willing to overlook a few plot holes. If you are looking for anything more in a book I don’t think this is the book for you.
May 18, 2020
It's interesting that I chose to read this in the middle of a pandemic with natural disasters making things even more difficult. Maybe I just needed a reminder that surviving difficult things is possible despite numerous mistakes being made by people in the process. Behrens tells a compelling tale of survival in the face of tremendous odds.
Hannah has only baby-sat once before, but she doesn't foresee any problems sitting for Zoe and Oscar. They are her neighbors and at 8 and 10, they shouldn't require too much oversight. So after partially cleaning the pet guinea pigs cage, she sits down to send some texts to her best friend. When a 9.0 earthquake strikes the three kids are left alone in a badly damaged house on the edge of an island. Due to some mistakes in judgement all three kids end up with physical issues. Zoe has a cut that gets infected. Oscar breaks his leg badly. And Hannah herself finds her asthma causing trouble. The kids must use the few resources remaining to survive until help arrives, if it arrives. As the days go by and no help comes, Hannah is forced to make the hardest decision of her life: stay and wait for help, or leave and try to find help?
I found myself sympathizing with poor Hannah as she made mistake after mistake. How many thirteen-year-olds know how to survive an enormous natural disaster after all? How many adults would know what to do? The challenges the kids face are compelling and kept me interested in the story. In fact, I was frightened for these kids on several occasions as they wrestled with some real dilemmas, life-threatening ones. For middle grade readers who want an interesting survival tale, I can recommend this one.
Hannah has only baby-sat once before, but she doesn't foresee any problems sitting for Zoe and Oscar. They are her neighbors and at 8 and 10, they shouldn't require too much oversight. So after partially cleaning the pet guinea pigs cage, she sits down to send some texts to her best friend. When a 9.0 earthquake strikes the three kids are left alone in a badly damaged house on the edge of an island. Due to some mistakes in judgement all three kids end up with physical issues. Zoe has a cut that gets infected. Oscar breaks his leg badly. And Hannah herself finds her asthma causing trouble. The kids must use the few resources remaining to survive until help arrives, if it arrives. As the days go by and no help comes, Hannah is forced to make the hardest decision of her life: stay and wait for help, or leave and try to find help?
I found myself sympathizing with poor Hannah as she made mistake after mistake. How many thirteen-year-olds know how to survive an enormous natural disaster after all? How many adults would know what to do? The challenges the kids face are compelling and kept me interested in the story. In fact, I was frightened for these kids on several occasions as they wrestled with some real dilemmas, life-threatening ones. For middle grade readers who want an interesting survival tale, I can recommend this one.
June 16, 2021
Fast paced like a movie! When you think nothing else could go wrong- it does!!
May 26, 2020
Definitely one of those books that make you want to go put your emergency kit together right away! This book had it all: earthquakes, no electricity, surviving outdoors, encountering wild animals, dealing with injuries, etc. I always like seeing these stories in fiction because for some reason it makes more sense when I can visualize facts in real-life contexts. Definitely adding it to my survival recommends for MG readers at the library!
March 22, 2020
Bookaday #4. Good MG survival story, a little creepy during these social distancing times. Natural disaster stories always make me a little nervous. Hope Texas isn’t prone to earthquakes! Love the ending format.
June 27, 2022
3.5 stars. Very suspenseful with lots of realistic action. I just couldn’t completely get into it for some reason. I don’t think kids will have the same trouble though, and they are the target audience.
May 26, 2024
3.5 This was a pretty good middle grade survival story. It had high stakes but didn't feel scary. I enjoyed our main character and her struggles with asthma while taking care of the kids younger than her. I think this was a good one in the genre!
February 21, 2020
Good survival fiction for kids. Made me a little anxious though, ha!
July 1, 2023
It's amazing that its waa so descriptive on what happened and showed so well that someone would react in that situation and how they pushed through the challenges 💯 amazing
July 7, 2025
Read this book around 5th grade and it was sooooo good! It was very cool and interesting to me when I was in that grade. Would recommend for younger ages.
January 13, 2020
The Disaster Days is an exciting new middle grade novel by Rebecca Behrens which describes what happens when Hannah, a young babysitter alone with her charges, must deal with the aftermath of a major earthquake in her island community off the coast of Seattle. I was really impressed with the realism of this book, and the fact that, with the exception of one friendship-related side plot that didn't feel necessary, it was a pure survival story, driven solely by the natural disaster and its consequences. As a mom, I was nervous the entire time, imagining how my own kids might handle this situation if they were a few years older, but when I put myself in the shoes of a middle grade reader who loves adventure and suspense, I could tell this book was really well-done. Often I donate my review copies, but this one I have decided to keep on our shelves, as I think my oldest will really like it when she's a few years older, and I also just can't remember the last time a middle grade book grabbed my attention so completely and really exceeded my expectations.
This review also appears on Instagram.
This review also appears on Instagram.
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September 17, 2019This fast-moving story is more than an earthquake adventure. Other "disasters" were personal, but to Hannah they were just as jolting: changes in her friendship with Neha and regretting things she'd said to her parents. The aftermath of the earthquake really allowed focus on Hannah's emotional ups and downs of growing up. Teens/Preteens don't have to have "earthquake experience" to connect with her.
Girls are more likely to pick up the book, but it has great general appeal.
Girls are more likely to pick up the book, but it has great general appeal.
February 25, 2025
4.5 stars
If I would have read this as a kid/teenager, I probably would have quit babysitting forever. It was so scary! But so captivating, I read it in less than 24 hours. Recommended for ~5th-8th graders
If I would have read this as a kid/teenager, I probably would have quit babysitting forever. It was so scary! But so captivating, I read it in less than 24 hours. Recommended for ~5th-8th graders
November 10, 2019
FREAKED ME OUT. Off to buy some emergency supplies.
October 19, 2020
I don’t typically read this type of book but I actually really liked it. I am excited to read Alone in the Woods soon.
October 7, 2019
Thirteen-year-old Hannah Steele lives in the Pelling Island community of Elliott Bay, right off the coast of Seattle. On the day she sets out on her first big babysitting assignment - the first one was just while her neighbor, Andrea, ran local errands - a major earthquake hits the Pacific Northwest. Hannah is stranded with her two younger charges, siblings Zoe and Oscar Matlock. And their pet guinea pig, Jupiter. Both kids are injured in the aftermath, and Hannah, who's asthmatic, left her rescue inhaler at home. With the power out, cell phones down, and rescue uncertain, Hannah has to use all of her mental and physical resources to keep the kids, Jupiter, and herself alive and safe, especially when the Matlock's house becomes an unsafe shelter.
Narrated by Hannah, The Disaster Days is a tense, consuming page-turner. By taking everything away from Hannah at the outset - adults, internet, cell phones, TV - Rebecca Behrens creates a survival story fraught with peril. The Zoe and Oscar's home is not safe; food and medical supplies are almost nil; there's a gas leak in the Matlock home, so Hannah moves the kids to a tent outside, where they narrowly miss an encounter with a bear. Aftershocks can hit at any moment. Hannah doesn't know the fates of her parents; Zoe and Oscar's mother, Andrea; or her best friend, Neha, with whom she had an argument minutes before the earthquake. Within the scope of the big disaster, Hannah copes with her world being upended, and the stress of keeping Zoe and Oscar as comfortable - which includes keeping a lot of their situation from them - as possible. She relies on a crank radio and the voice of a newscaster, Beth Kajawa, to get periodic updates that will help guide her decisions. An author's note at the end touches on earthquakes, post-quake threats like sand volcanoes and liquefaction, and emergency preparedness. Rebecca Behrens' author website includes free, downloadable resources for parents and educators and links to websites and online resources about earthquake science, and emergency preparedness.
The Disaster Days is reading you, and your readers, will not want to put down. Have readers who like Hatchet or Rodman Philbrick's The Big Dark? Give them The Disaster Days. This one is a definite must-read, must-have.
Narrated by Hannah, The Disaster Days is a tense, consuming page-turner. By taking everything away from Hannah at the outset - adults, internet, cell phones, TV - Rebecca Behrens creates a survival story fraught with peril. The Zoe and Oscar's home is not safe; food and medical supplies are almost nil; there's a gas leak in the Matlock home, so Hannah moves the kids to a tent outside, where they narrowly miss an encounter with a bear. Aftershocks can hit at any moment. Hannah doesn't know the fates of her parents; Zoe and Oscar's mother, Andrea; or her best friend, Neha, with whom she had an argument minutes before the earthquake. Within the scope of the big disaster, Hannah copes with her world being upended, and the stress of keeping Zoe and Oscar as comfortable - which includes keeping a lot of their situation from them - as possible. She relies on a crank radio and the voice of a newscaster, Beth Kajawa, to get periodic updates that will help guide her decisions. An author's note at the end touches on earthquakes, post-quake threats like sand volcanoes and liquefaction, and emergency preparedness. Rebecca Behrens' author website includes free, downloadable resources for parents and educators and links to websites and online resources about earthquake science, and emergency preparedness.
The Disaster Days is reading you, and your readers, will not want to put down. Have readers who like Hatchet or Rodman Philbrick's The Big Dark? Give them The Disaster Days. This one is a definite must-read, must-have.
December 25, 2019
Thank you to the #kidlitexchange network for the review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.--- If you’re looking for an action packed read, I highly recommend this middle-grade story. As someone who took the Red Cross babysitter's training at the age of 11, you go into your first job feeling almost overconfident. You feel like you can handle any situation that comes your way. Hannah Steele has the same sense of confidence, until the absolute worst happens: an earthquake. Now Hannah and the two children she is watching, Zoe and Oscar, are trapped in their disaster zone of a house with no cell service, no electricity, and very limited resources. Things quickly spiral out of control, and Hannah is left to handle crisis after crisis on her own. The Disaster Days is a story of survival and resourcefulness. With each new situation, Hannah provides her own inner thoughts and dialogue as she tries to figure out what to do next. I found the narration to be authentic to the character’s age. It contained the perfect balance of inevitable panic and necessary ingenuity the situation called for. I feel like any child who has babysat before or has younger siblings or cousins would enjoy this read. The action and suspense kept building, and I found myself glued to the pages to try and figure out how Hannah would address each new issue that arose as she tries to survive four days on her own. Without giving any spoilers, I loved the format and style the author used to end the story. It fit the plot and it perfectly wrapped up any loose ends. Finally, I enjoyed that this story was a survival tale riddled with factual information about natural disasters and earthquakes. As she states in her author’s notes, Behrens assures the reader that the story is fiction, but the situation could be very real. This read is packed with many real life lessons, and this is coming from a teacher and a seasoned babysitter! It was the perfect reminder that even in a world inundated with technology, it is possible to survive in a world without electricity with perseverance, creativity, and the will to keep going. I would put this on my shelf for anyone in need of a story filled with suspense, action, or survival tips.
December 8, 2020
Hannah lives in an idyllic remote community on Pelling island near Seattle. After school she heads over to one of her two neighbor's houses to babysit the Matlock kids while their mom goes to an art show in the city. Hannah is a little nervous as it is only her 2nd time babysitting ever. Just a little while after Ms. Matlock leaves, and Hannah is in the middle of a texting argument with her supposed best friend, a major earthquake hits. The Cascades never get earthquakes, or so Hannah thought. But they are definitely in the middle of one and its aftershocks now. Can Hannah and the two elementary-age Matlock kids survive on their own in their isolated community till help comes?
I can count on one hand the number of books that have been enticing enough for me to give up precious sleep on a school night to finish in the past 5 years. This book managed to do that. I HAD to know how things turned out even though bedtime came around and I still had 70 pages to go. This was a super timely read for me, because just a few weeks ago I read The Big One by Rusch about how the Cascade region doesn't have regular little earthquakes but gets these massive quakes every couple hundred years and why that is so. This book takes that premise, and weaves a very engrossing tale around it. (I totally recommend reading these books together!) Hannah is a likable, flawed 13 year old doing the best she can in the circumstances she's in. She has some great revelations as the time goes on about things she needs to fix or change as soon as her life returns to some kind of normal. The kids she's babysitting are also likable. They have their own issues and moments when they've understandably just had too much stress, while at other moments they rise to the occasion and go above and beyond to make it, and you can't help but cheer for them. If you like disaster/survival stories and watching kids figure out how to make it with the resources they have around them, hunt this book down.
Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. Two of the characters are injured (some blood pus described but more bruising and pain) and one has asthma attacks.
I can count on one hand the number of books that have been enticing enough for me to give up precious sleep on a school night to finish in the past 5 years. This book managed to do that. I HAD to know how things turned out even though bedtime came around and I still had 70 pages to go. This was a super timely read for me, because just a few weeks ago I read The Big One by Rusch about how the Cascade region doesn't have regular little earthquakes but gets these massive quakes every couple hundred years and why that is so. This book takes that premise, and weaves a very engrossing tale around it. (I totally recommend reading these books together!) Hannah is a likable, flawed 13 year old doing the best she can in the circumstances she's in. She has some great revelations as the time goes on about things she needs to fix or change as soon as her life returns to some kind of normal. The kids she's babysitting are also likable. They have their own issues and moments when they've understandably just had too much stress, while at other moments they rise to the occasion and go above and beyond to make it, and you can't help but cheer for them. If you like disaster/survival stories and watching kids figure out how to make it with the resources they have around them, hunt this book down.
Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. Two of the characters are injured (some blood pus described but more bruising and pain) and one has asthma attacks.
March 27, 2020
@Kidlitexchange
Thank you to @sourcebookskids for sharing an advance copy of The Disaster Days by Rebecca Behrens with the #kidlitexchange network. This book was released in October 2019. All opinions are my own.
Hannah is thirteen-years-old and is babysitting Zoe and Oscar, the Matlock children, for the second time ever. This time, their mother will be leaving the island of Pelling and going across the bridge to Seattle for an art show. This will be Hannah's first time really babysitting and her day is already off to a bad start. She misses her bus to school and forgets her inhaler at home. Her day worsens when hours into her babysitting gig a major earthquake hits. Now, Hannah must figure out what to do and how to keep herself and her two charges safe.
I really enjoyed reading this book, and I believe it lived up to the description of "Hatchet meets the Baby-Sitter's Club." It's quick paced and disaster strikes in just the right moments to keep the reader on their toes. The book is incredibly realistic and I feel that many middle grade readers will be imagining themselves in similar situations. That being said, I also found this book terrifying as I live in the Cascadia Subduction Zone and have heard over and over again in the past few years that we're due for the big one. This book reminds me of how woefully unprepared I am. I also feel that though I'm an adult, my initial reactions will be very similar to those of Hannah considering I've never experienced an earthquake or any natural disaster of this magnitude. I think this book could be a great conversation starter for families and it could encourage kids to talk to their parents about their family's emergency plan and supplies. Overall, I loved the book and found that I couldn't put it down as I had to find out what happened next. I think it would be the perfect recommendation for readers who enjoyed Paulsen's Hatchet, Kehret's Escaping the Giant Wave, or Tarshis's I Survived series.
Thank you to @sourcebookskids for sharing an advance copy of The Disaster Days by Rebecca Behrens with the #kidlitexchange network. This book was released in October 2019. All opinions are my own.
Hannah is thirteen-years-old and is babysitting Zoe and Oscar, the Matlock children, for the second time ever. This time, their mother will be leaving the island of Pelling and going across the bridge to Seattle for an art show. This will be Hannah's first time really babysitting and her day is already off to a bad start. She misses her bus to school and forgets her inhaler at home. Her day worsens when hours into her babysitting gig a major earthquake hits. Now, Hannah must figure out what to do and how to keep herself and her two charges safe.
I really enjoyed reading this book, and I believe it lived up to the description of "Hatchet meets the Baby-Sitter's Club." It's quick paced and disaster strikes in just the right moments to keep the reader on their toes. The book is incredibly realistic and I feel that many middle grade readers will be imagining themselves in similar situations. That being said, I also found this book terrifying as I live in the Cascadia Subduction Zone and have heard over and over again in the past few years that we're due for the big one. This book reminds me of how woefully unprepared I am. I also feel that though I'm an adult, my initial reactions will be very similar to those of Hannah considering I've never experienced an earthquake or any natural disaster of this magnitude. I think this book could be a great conversation starter for families and it could encourage kids to talk to their parents about their family's emergency plan and supplies. Overall, I loved the book and found that I couldn't put it down as I had to find out what happened next. I think it would be the perfect recommendation for readers who enjoyed Paulsen's Hatchet, Kehret's Escaping the Giant Wave, or Tarshis's I Survived series.
January 25, 2020
I'm at the end of the bell curve on this, but I just couldn't get into this story of a girl who is stuck on her Seattle island community babysitting when an earthquake hits. In theory, it sounds like an excellent plot. In fact, I was fully on board in the lead up chapters, but once the disaster struck, too much didn't square with what I thought would happen in an event like this. As much as I tried not to let details like that interfere with my enjoyment of the rest of the story, it remained a distraction.
Hannah is babysitting the Matlock kids for only her second time. Both her mother and the kid's mother will be off the island for the evening. When the earthquake happens, objects fall and break, windows shatter, the refrigerator falls forward onto the door, the electricity goes out, gas is leaking, and cell phones don't work. This is all a worst case scenario, but still believable. What is not believable is all the little details. It happens over 3 days, not 3 weeks. It all just feels too desperate to me. Her house is 3/4 of a mile away, and the island has a town, so I don't get this vibe of being lost and alone. Besides that, the ending comes out of nowhere. With 5 pages left, they are still in the midst of the disaster. The author solves this problem by tacking an interview on at the end. I wasn't impressed.
I really enjoyed The Summer of Lost and Found, so my reaction to this one is surprising. I wanted to like it. I really did. If you want an excellent crisis/disaster book which kids will like, check out The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick. Despite the 3.7 rating on this website, its always checked out in my school library.
Hannah is babysitting the Matlock kids for only her second time. Both her mother and the kid's mother will be off the island for the evening. When the earthquake happens, objects fall and break, windows shatter, the refrigerator falls forward onto the door, the electricity goes out, gas is leaking, and cell phones don't work. This is all a worst case scenario, but still believable. What is not believable is all the little details. It happens over 3 days, not 3 weeks. It all just feels too desperate to me. Her house is 3/4 of a mile away, and the island has a town, so I don't get this vibe of being lost and alone. Besides that, the ending comes out of nowhere. With 5 pages left, they are still in the midst of the disaster. The author solves this problem by tacking an interview on at the end. I wasn't impressed.
I really enjoyed The Summer of Lost and Found, so my reaction to this one is surprising. I wanted to like it. I really did. If you want an excellent crisis/disaster book which kids will like, check out The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick. Despite the 3.7 rating on this website, its always checked out in my school library.
November 18, 2019
Oh, it’s been a really long time since I read a MG book that kept me on the edge of my seat like this one did. And I loved it! I loved the suspense, the adventure, the ingenuity and the love that filled every page.
Hannah is 13, lives on a small, sleepy Seattle island. Her day begins like any other; she misses the bus (not unusual), her mom is over protective when Hannah realizes she forgot her inhaler, she feels a nagging worry her best friend is slipping away. Looking back, Hannah so wishes she’d let her mom hug her when she dropped her off at school, she hadn’t picked a fight with her best friend and she’d told her dad “love you” when he called from his business trip. But Hannah had no idea what would happen later that day…
What does happen is the biggest earthquake the west coast has experienced in 300 years. It happens while Hannah is taking care of her next door neighbors, ages 7 and 10 and cuts all communications and travel to their island home. It means the three of them are totally alone for the next three days. It means that Hannah must use her ingenuity, her courage to not only keep them out of danger but safe from aftershocks and wild animals, but also find food, water and shelter.
There was an amazing sense of place and rich description of all the experiences in the story. You could feel the dampness, the fog and the dust. You could taste the foul water and the strange things they were forced to eat. Most of all you could imagine the terror and loneliness the kids experienced as they tried to understand what was happening to them.
This is a perfect book for anyone looking for adventure and suspense. I highly recommend it! And most importantly, after reading this you’ll feel compelled to get your emergency box prepared. I started last night!
Hannah is 13, lives on a small, sleepy Seattle island. Her day begins like any other; she misses the bus (not unusual), her mom is over protective when Hannah realizes she forgot her inhaler, she feels a nagging worry her best friend is slipping away. Looking back, Hannah so wishes she’d let her mom hug her when she dropped her off at school, she hadn’t picked a fight with her best friend and she’d told her dad “love you” when he called from his business trip. But Hannah had no idea what would happen later that day…
What does happen is the biggest earthquake the west coast has experienced in 300 years. It happens while Hannah is taking care of her next door neighbors, ages 7 and 10 and cuts all communications and travel to their island home. It means the three of them are totally alone for the next three days. It means that Hannah must use her ingenuity, her courage to not only keep them out of danger but safe from aftershocks and wild animals, but also find food, water and shelter.
There was an amazing sense of place and rich description of all the experiences in the story. You could feel the dampness, the fog and the dust. You could taste the foul water and the strange things they were forced to eat. Most of all you could imagine the terror and loneliness the kids experienced as they tried to understand what was happening to them.
This is a perfect book for anyone looking for adventure and suspense. I highly recommend it! And most importantly, after reading this you’ll feel compelled to get your emergency box prepared. I started last night!
March 2, 2021
Thirteen year-old Hannah wishes her mom wouldn’t baby her. She also wishes her cool, best friend didn’t seem like she was drifting away - lured by the popular soccer kids. But today she has something to distract her - her first real, solo babysitting job with her fifth and third grade neighbor kids. This time their mom is leaving their sparsely populated end of the island for a Seattle art opening. She jokes on the way out the door that while the house is low on food, if they get really desperate they can eat the one can of refried beans in the pantry. An hour into the job the big one hits. No phone, no cell, no power, no water and lots of damage. Self-doubting, asthmatic, social media dependent Hannah is forced to take on some monumental responsibility and face some terrifying challenges.
Great for kids who like realistic drama and are attracted to babysitting stories. They typical girl trope - everything is my fault - is in evidence but eventually even Hannah can’t blame herself for a level 9 earthquake. The tone is a little didactic, with Hannah explaining exactly how she feels rather than showing us “ When Andrea had called and asked me to take on the job of being their babysitter, it had seemed like a not-big deal. But it actually was a big deal to be in charge—whether for a couple of hours or…indefinitely, as I was now. Sure, I had made mistakes. But maybe I didn’t need to be perfect. Like Dad said, I simply needed to try my best. Sometimes that alone was heroic.” (The word ‘indefinitely’ doesn’t feel like one Hannah would use.)
There is one charming drawing as Hannah and her fifth grade charge start to record necessary information the old fashioned way. I wished that hadn’t been a stand alone, but had been carried through. The librarian in me loved how useful the old fashioned print encyclopedias turned out to be.
Great for kids who like realistic drama and are attracted to babysitting stories. They typical girl trope - everything is my fault - is in evidence but eventually even Hannah can’t blame herself for a level 9 earthquake. The tone is a little didactic, with Hannah explaining exactly how she feels rather than showing us “ When Andrea had called and asked me to take on the job of being their babysitter, it had seemed like a not-big deal. But it actually was a big deal to be in charge—whether for a couple of hours or…indefinitely, as I was now. Sure, I had made mistakes. But maybe I didn’t need to be perfect. Like Dad said, I simply needed to try my best. Sometimes that alone was heroic.” (The word ‘indefinitely’ doesn’t feel like one Hannah would use.)
There is one charming drawing as Hannah and her fifth grade charge start to record necessary information the old fashioned way. I wished that hadn’t been a stand alone, but had been carried through. The librarian in me loved how useful the old fashioned print encyclopedias turned out to be.
June 3, 2020
I had to double-check to see if the author had any connection to Seattle/Puget Sound (she doesn't as far as I could tell, so props to her for doing great research) because there were things that most people who haven't lived in Washington wouldn't know... like the fact that on days when Mt. Rainier is actually visible instead of covered by clouds, locals actually say "The mountain is out!" :P The whole thing felt very genuine to me as 5 of the 18 months I spent living in northwestern Washington were actually spent on south Whidbey Island, and her descriptions of the fictional "Pelling Island" felt very similar to my experience on Whidbey. We had fairly heavy snow and ice coverage a couple of times while I was there and the consequences were similar: loss of electricity, road blockages, etc. When you have a small island community like south Whidbey, little disruptions make a huge impact, and I can't imagine what the effects will be there whenever an earthquake finally happens at the fault lines on the pacific coast.
Anyway, I think this would be a great realistic fiction choice for any kid who loves the historical fiction I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis! And, if your kids aren't the type to be kept up at night by fears of every bad thing from the book happening to them, this could be a great read-aloud to serve as a jumping-off point to discuss preparedness, what the most likely natural disasters are in your area, and what you can do as a family to be more prepared for them.
Anyway, I think this would be a great realistic fiction choice for any kid who loves the historical fiction I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis! And, if your kids aren't the type to be kept up at night by fears of every bad thing from the book happening to them, this could be a great read-aloud to serve as a jumping-off point to discuss preparedness, what the most likely natural disasters are in your area, and what you can do as a family to be more prepared for them.
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