The Storm: Students of Biloxi, Mississippi, Remember Hurrican Katrin

by Barbara Barbieri McGrath

On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the coastlines of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. It was a storm the people of Biloxi, Mississippi, like many other Gulf Coast residents, will never forget. Students, teachers, and administrators from the Biloxi Public Schools share their stories from the days preceding Hurricane Katrina to those first days of recovery after the storm. And even while their city lay in ruins, one remarkable lighthouse survived, serving as a beacon of hope.
Their powerful images and moving personal accounts pay tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.

32 pages, Paperback

First published August 28, 2006

Reviews

[Brook White · Rating 4 out of 5]

To read about and see Hurricane Katrina from the perspective of children is harrowing and moving. An excellent short collection of narratives and drawings done by students.

[Julie Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hurricane Katrina brought devastaion to the people of the Gulf Coast, not just New Orleans. My daughter and her husband lived in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. They lost everything they owned except a blow up shark to ride the waves and a spatula to flip pancakes. This collection of students' reactions to that same storm is priceless. Chilren from near by Biloxi tell the world the mixed up feelings of living through such a devastating storm and what was really important after it was over.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read aloud to introduce a severe weather unit. I had my kids popcorn read different passages written by their grade level. Most entries were 3-5 sentences long but there were also some longer poems by high school students.