Hurricane Child

Starred review from January 1, 2018

Gr 4-6-Twelve-year-old Caroline and her father live on Water Island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Caroline, known as a "Hurricane Child," since she was born during a hurricane, is plagued with bad luck. She sees a spirit-the woman in black-that no one else can see. She is bullied daily at school by both children and her teachers who make cruel remarks about her dark skin tone. Her feelings of loneliness are compounded by the fact that her mother left and never returned. When a new student from Barbados named Kalinda joins her class, Caroline is drawn to Kalinda's confidence and disinterest in befriending the bullies. The two girls soon become close friends. Caroline realizes her feelings for Kalinda are more than platonic and when she expresses them to Kalinda, they are unfortunately met with resistance. Nevertheless, Kalinda agrees to help Caroline find her mother in the midst of a terrible storm. By the end, the protagonist is able to feel more at peace with herself, her family, and her complex relationship with Kalinda. The novel moves at a substantial pace and contains intermittent flashbacks. Told solely from Caroline's perspective, readers get an in-depth understanding of her experiences and feelings. Lush descriptions bring the Caribbean environment to vivid life. VERDICT An excellent and nuanced coming-of-age tale with a dash of magical realism for readers who enjoy character-driven novels, especially those with middle grade LGBTQ+ characterizations.-Jess Gafkowitz, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from December 15, 2017
Born during a storm, Caroline Murphy, a 12-year-old black girl, is convinced that she has been cursed with bad luck. The old ladies around her way say this is the fate of any child born during a hurricane. Recent events in her life seem to confirm this. Feeling unwanted by everyone, especially since the abrupt departure of her mom, Caroline leads a difficult life. She is bullied by those at her school in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, including her teacher, for her skin, which is darker than theirs. She is also followed around by a spirit--the woman in black--that she is sure only she can see. The arrival of a new student from Barbados changes Caroline's life significantly. Also bullied, the exuberantly dreadlocked Kalinda becomes Caroline's first and only friend, and soon Caroline's feelings blossom into something more than platonic. This spells problems for Caroline, since feelings like these are considered sinful in Catholic school. Caroline now must deal with growing up without a mother and her feelings for Kalinda, all while trying to figure out why the woman in black will not leave her alone. Her journey to the answers to her most burning questions finds her discovering much about herself and those around her. Writing in Caroline's present-tense voice, Callender draws readers in and makes them identify with Caroline's angst and sorrow and joy and pain.Embedding her appealing protagonist in a fully realized Caribbean setting, Callender has readers rooting for Caroline the whole way. (Fiction. 8-12)

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June 18, 2018
Twelve-year-old Caroline Murphy was born during a hurricane, which is considered a curse in her home of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, and she’s convinced that she’s the recipient of bad luck. Caroline’s mother left her alone with her father more than a year ago, sending occasional postcards that slowly dwindled to nothing; Caroline is bullied at school for her darker skin; and she begins to see a spirit dressed in black and wonders whether it means help or harm. When Kalinda arrives from Barbados, she strikes Caroline as a true individual, someone who can help her on her quest to find her mother, and things begin to look up. Then Caroline’s admiration of Kalinda becomes romantic love, which is not well received in her community, and she must face her feelings on all fronts. Callender’s debut novel contains absorbing descriptions of the island (“The paint gets big bubbles whenever it rains so that I can pick and pick and pick at them until they burst”) and is a folkloric tale about overcoming old narratives and creating new ones. Ages 8–12.

Starred review from February 1, 2018
Grades 4-7 *Starred Review* One year and three months have passed since Caroline's mother left her behind on Water Island, adjacent to Saint Thomas. Did she desert her because she doesn't love her, or is it possible that the strange spirit Caroline keeps seeing, the woman in black, is involved in her disappearance? Caroline finds a true friend in Kalinda, a rare new girl who arrives on the island from Barbados, though for Caroline, their connection runs deeper than mere friendship. But it's not only that Kalinda can see the spirits, tooit's everything about Kalinda, and soon Caroline harbors an all-consuming crush . . . or could it be love? Caroline and Kalinda's quest leads to stunning revelations that shatter Caroline's conception of her mother. Set against the richly evoked backdrop of the Caribbean, Callender's novel captures the exquisite agony and pain that accompany rejection and abandonment. Caroline's search for answers provides a steady through line for the story, but it's the deeper questioning and reflection that set this book apart. Whether Caroline is contemplating the way religion is invoked to address same-sex attraction or the possibility of multiple realities existing alongside one another, the inner workings of her mind pay homage to the complexity of being 12. Callender's debut enriches the growing body of LGBTQ fiction for upper-elementary- and middle-school students. Visceral, pensive, and memorable.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2018
Twelve-year-old Caroline--born during a hurricane, abandoned by her mother, and bullied at school for having the "darkest skin,"--is certain she is cursed. Things change for the better when new student Kalinda arrives. Caroline's immediate, present-tense narration thoroughly immerses readers in her struggles to mend her broken family and confront her feelings for Kalinda. Callender's debut masterfully deploys the rich landscape of Caribbean life.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

May 1, 2018
Twelve-year-old Caroline Murphy, who lives on tiny Water Island near St. Thomas, is certain that she is cursed, and she may be right. Born inauspiciously during a hurricane?a portent of bad luck?Caroline was left behind with her father when her mother left without explanation. With the darkest skin and the thickest hair in the whole Catholic school, Caroline is bullied by classmates and teachers alike. She is also haunted by a spirit?a woman in black that only Caroline can see. Things finally begin to change for the better when new student Kalinda arrives from Barbados and instantly charms everyone, including Caroline. The immediacy of Caroline's present-tense narration thoroughly immerses readers in an emotional tempest. Desperation to mend her broken family meets the rising tide of her crush on Kalinda as Caroline struggles to confront her feelings and the truth about her mother's departure. Callender's debut masterfully deploys the rich landscape of Caribbean life and is trenchant in its portrayal of the cruel reality of prejudice alongside the fragility and resilience of inner strength. Fans of Tracey Baptiste's The Jumbies will find similar thoughtful exploration of island identities and nuanced themes of difference, belonging, and family. anastasia m. Collins

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)