The Hurricanes: One High School Team's Homecoming After Katrina [Hardcover]

Jere Longman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 2008

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina pummeled the lower end of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, a peninsula housing one of the nation’s most isolated, vulnerable, and vital counties. A year later several ravaged communities came together to form South Plaquemines High. Kids who were former rivals defiantly nicknamed their football team the Hurricanes and made the 2006 state playoffs.

In 2007, South Plaquemines set its sights on a state championship. The Hurricanes used a trailer as a makeshift locker room and lifted weights in a destroyed gym that had no electricity. For the players, many of them still living in FEMA trailers, football offered a refuge.

Bestselling author Jeré Longman spent two seasons following the team. In The Hurricanes, the team’s journey provides a lens through which to view the legacy of Katrina, the cycle of poverty in rural America, and the attempt to maintain traditions in the face of uncertainty. Football is a familiar remnant of the way things used to be—and a sign of hope in a place of disaster.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A year after Hurricane Katrina pummeled the lower end of New Orleans' Plaquemines Parish, a peninsula housing one of the nation's most isolated and vulnerable counties, students from several demolished area schools set aside their rivalries at newly created South Plaquemines High. Cyril Crutchfield Jr., former coach at Port Sulphur High, took over the new school's football team-called, naturally, the Hurricanes-and led a ragtag group of players, living in FEMA trailers and lifting weights in a crumbling gymnasium, to the 2006 state playoffs. In 2007, the Hurricanes made another bid for the state championship, and New York Times sports writer Longman (Among the Heroes: United Flight 93 and the Passengers and Crew Who Fought Back) was granted exclusive access to every down. The result is an unflinching and often unflattering chronicle that reads like the series of newspaper articles it began as. It's clear that Longman, a native Louisianan, immersed himself in the local culture, and his insistence on providing political and social context makes this much more than a sports book. Unfortunately, Logman gets bogged down in that context ( as in nearly 20 pages on oyster farming), trying to make a big story-full of heart, sacrifice and the kind of American stories for which "inspired by" movies are made-even bigger.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School—Longman follows high school football coach Cyril Crutchfield, Jr., in his dogged determination to rebuild Louisiana's Plaquemines Parish through the sport. Teen rivals from three different schools joined together at the new South Plaquemines High. Overcoming many obstacles—including lifting weights in a makeshift training room in a ruined gym while watching highlights of opposing teams on a VCR run by a generator—this team made it to the 2006 state playoffs. Their goal for the next season was the state championship at the Dome in New Orleans. In addition to being a story about football, the book showcases the rebuilding of a community rich in tradition and commitment to family. It also highlights struggles with insurance companies, the poorly built FEMA trailers, and government subsidies. Share this title with fans of Friday Night Lights or those who want to learn about the effects of Hurricane Katrina on a small community.—Gregory Lum, Jesuit High School, Portland, OR
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: PublicAffairs (August 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 158648673X
• ISBN-13: 978-1586486730
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #476,480 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A true story, but one that misses the sad point, January 4, 2009

By 

M. Fischer (Fort Collins, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Hurricanes: One High School Team's Homecoming After Katrina (Hardcover)

I'll start out by saying that this is a good story. This book focuses on football, and the story of a team and teams coming together to rebuild their lives. It's a "rags-to-riches" tale that will surely one-day make a good movie, but it ignores the real tragedy that I was thinking about the entire time. What it doesn't focus on is the real tragedy of why rural Louisiana is dirt poor and uneducated. A year after Katrina, officials are proud to announce that the new sod is on the field, yet there is no school cafeteria. The scoreboard works, but there are not enough books to go around at school. More examples abound like this abound, but it is clear to me why communities like this will continue to decline as they focus more on their fleeting football success than on graduating educated kids from their high schools. A few of these kids will end up in college, and maybe one every few years will play pro ball, but 200 others will be poorly served by their lack of a decent education.

4.0 out of 5 stars STORM WARNING! A surprisingly good book!, July 23, 2009

By 

James T. White "White Line Fever" (Ottawa, KS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Hurricanes: One High School Team's Homecoming After Katrina (Hardcover)

THE HURRICANES: ONE HIGH SCHOOL TEAM'S HOMECOMING AFTER KATRINA is a heartwarming narration of achieving a dream after adversity.

Once again, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED provided an excerpt of this book in a 2008 issue. Numerous times SI has piqued my interest with selected sections from a book, and later on after reading it, I am glad I purchased or checked it out.

This is a story of a high school football team's achievement on the field of play after nearly the whole team faced tremendous adversity following the destruction of Hurricane Katrina in the bayou country. Jere Longman reviews so many areas surronding the team, community, coaches, parents, etc.,in that he presents a wonderful epic and narrative story. Not only does the community choose to advance from the destruction, but two high schools merge to represent the devasted area in sports. It is important for Mr. Longman to intertwine the recovery of emotional, physical and cultural areas in building the success of communities and a football team. It is interesting to read how the success of the region is ramrodded by the football team. Very pleasurable narration is provided to tell the story of the area's rebuilding. Presentation of the characters and culture of the region is done very well. At times the author bogs down the work with specifics of government beauracray and statutes. However, when he centers on football, it should be relished by the reader.

As a football official and former coach for over thirty years, I was shocked by the use of profane language by Coach Crutchfield whether on the field of play, in a locker roomor or simply trying to motivate his team. In the state of Kansas where I work sports, this type of abuse and use of vulgarities to his team, would have no use in this state. In a way, Mr. Longman presents Coach Crutchfield as a, "Mentor or hero", to the team, school, and community. I had little if any respect for Crutchfield's treatment of individuals. A total lack of "class" by a coach.

In conclusion, I was surprised how good this book was to read. Though I would recommend more interesting narrative books on football, i.e. TWELVE MIGHTY MITES OR THE SWEET SEASON, this still is a good work.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read, Great story., October 21, 2008

By 

Samuel Clements "Rad" (Metairie, Louisiana) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Hurricanes: One High School Team's Homecoming After Katrina (Hardcover)

A well written, vibrant story about life after Katrina in a unique community. The story, based in a rural community surrounded by the Mississippi river and the Gulf of Mexico, accurately describes real personalities who make the community special in many ways.

If you are a fan of athletics, community life and the struggles of rebuilding life, then you will enjoy this book. One of the best books I have read in a long time.