Carbone, Elisa. Storm warriors - Young Adult Review - Book Review

Random House, Dell, Yearling. 168p. c2001. 0-440-418798. $4.99. J

Nathan is a 14-year-old African American boy who lives on an island in North Carolina in 1895. He lives with his father and grandfather in a small house located near the Pea Island rescue station. The book is based on actual rescue missions of the Pea Island station in the 1890s, and they are included throughout the book. When ships run aground off the coast, this group of men charge out onto the beach and attempt to rescue the sailors on board the sinking ships. Sometimes they shoot a rope out to the boat in distress, other times they have to row small skiffs out and attempt to board the ship, and on one occasion a rescue worker swims out into the choppy water to rescue the sailors one man at a time. Nathan, his father and his grandfather help with the rescues, but they are not actual members of the crew.

Nathan wants more than anything to join when he grows up. So does every other African boy near the island. His father does not want him to hope too hard because there are only a few members of the crew and hundreds of people who want to join. It angers the father because there are so many rescue stations, but only one admits African-Americans. This is one of many examples of racism that the book deals with very successfully. Other examples include the doctor who refuses to see African Americans during daytime hours, which leads to the sickness and death of many residents, the unequal funding of the white and African American station houses, the unfair treatment business owners show toward Nathan's father, and the burning of the stationmasters house by some of the white rescue workers on another island. In the end, Nathan realizes his dreams--but not the dreams he had at the beginning of the book.

The book deals well with racism and realizing one's dreams. My only criticism is the dialogue. It isn't realistic or historically accurate. The reader doesn't notice after a while because it is a good book that is easy to read, but it is still something that can be irritating for some readers. Keith Sorenson, Teacher, Park Ridge, IL

COPYRIGHT 2003 Kliatt
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group