Customer Reviews

Night of the Twisters

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read this book when I was in the 4th grade, and it sparked my undying interest in tornadoes. The story revolves around 12-year-old Dan Hatch, his baby brother, Ryan, and Dan's best friend, Arthur, who are home alone when a devasting tornado sweeps through town. Not only does it capture the terror of a devasting natural disaster from a child's point of view. This book also touches a nerve by exploring issues of sibling rivalry, the difficulties that sometimes occur with change in a family, and the importance of friends helping friends. The overall theme in this book is that people need to have a plan of action for such disasters, and it also touches on the fact that, though we all have our disagreements, strong families can draw support from God, one another, and friends, and use that support to overcome the obstacles created by the disaster. Also, this book touches on how we tend to take things for granted, until we suddenly don't have them anymore. All in all, an excellent read for your older children. The best part is that, though the characters are fictional, the events are real. The book is based on the events of June 3, 1980, when seven tornadoes blew threw the town of Grand Island, Nebraska in just three hours, leaving utter devastation in their wake.

PARENTAL ADVISORY: Due to some realistic depictions of events surrounding a natural disaster, this book may not be suitable for your younger children. It's OK for any kid who's 4th grade or higher.

12-year-old Dan Hatch, his best friend Arthur, and baby brother Ryan are home alone when a devasting tornado strikes! This story focuses on the devastation and destruction of a tornado, the main characters' strength and will to live through disaster, and it also stresses the importance of having strong famiily bonds to get throgh tough times. After the tornado hits, Dan & his friends realize that they're on their own for survival...and yet they help free an elderly resident who's trapped in her home. Later on in the novel, the main characters each get the chance to show the reader their feelings and concerns about what has happened to their families and homes, and the doubts of whether they will fully recover. As a fourth-grader, my parents gave this book to me for Christmas. It sat on my desk unused for a while, but then one night while my parents were having company, I decided to go to my room and read. I vividly remember that once I started this book, I could not put it down, and I read it straight through in one night. I have since read it dozens of times even as an adult, and I have also seen the movie (which is badly written and not at all true to the story). This book has single-handedly inspired my interest in tornadoes and severe weather. My recommendation? If you've got an older child--boy OR girl--who likes to read good adventures, BUY THIS ONE!! By the way, the story is a fictional account but was inspired by actual events on June 3, 1980, when seven deadly tornadoes hit Grand Island, Nebraska, in a three-hour period.

This book is EXCELLENT, and not just for kids. And personally I think it's one of the scariest books I've ever read. Basically a 12 year old boy is home alone ona stormy night with his best friend and his baby brother when a twister hits, completely destroying their house and their entire neighborhood.

Based on a real happening "Night of the Twisters" is truly a great book! The characters experiences are very lifelike.

Dan, his friend Authur, and his baby brother Ryan are alone when the tornado strikes. Acting on what they were taught they survive. However they realize that they are alone and Dan can not locate his parents. This when he realizes how important family is. Authur meanwhile locates his family and has an emotional reunion. This book was very well written because it shows us how important family is to all of us.

Just to convince you how good this book is my 12 year old friend read this book 5 times and was she who convinced me to buy it. I have to say she was right because this is an excellent book! I highly recomment this book to anyone older than 8 because their are some gruesome parts to this book that younger kids might not be able to take in very well. This is also a very good research book for anyone who is researching tornadoes. I have to say after reading this book, I am much more interested in tornadoes!

I give it 4 stars for young people doing courageous deeds, even though they are really scared, but 2 stars for not living up to the hype. Night of the Twisters! Really, the book describes one big storm and one big twister, and the rest happens in the background. I'm a mom with a family of boys.

It is the summer holidays and Dan and his friend Arthur have just spent a beautiful afternoon swimming. The boys are in grade seven, are just at the beginning of adolescence, and life seems free and easy, but already the weather is turning as the rain clouds scoot overhead. Hour by hour the circumstances get worse, but the boys remain largely unaware of the oncoming disaster. Will the boys, or their families, be hurt? How will they cope in the face of terrible disaster?

This is a classic tale of survival. It is based on a real disaster that happened in Grand Island, Nebraska on June 4, 1980. The book is competently written and has a very realistic atmosphere, engaging the reader in the fast paced train of events, and making us care about the fate of the characters. The values of self-reliance, level-headedness and ingenuity are emphasized as a natural consequence of the plot without any preachiness or moralizing. The book is now twenty years old and has dated a little, such as the long gone TV programs the boys watch. Most of the story, however, is timeless. Twisters will virtually forever remain the same frightening threat to human survival. This book is certainly well worth reading and is a cut above the average thriller written for teens.

The Night of the Twisters by Ivy Ruckman, is a story that will keep you going haywire. You'll be happy, scared, and upset all at once when reading this book. Dan, Arthur, and baby Ryan are all home alone, when the twisters hit. Dan sprints up the stairs dogging glass, shoes, and anything flying in the air to get up to the baby's room. Dan frantically tries to grab his baby brother from the crib but he is caught, finally after two minutes of struggling the young boy out of the crib, he gets Ryan out of the crib, but the twisters still roared on. Dan, with little Ryan in his arms rushed into the small bathroom where Arthur was already laying in the bathtub. The boys all crowded up into the small bathtub and prayed aloud, but the twisters were so loud that Dan couldn't even hear himself. That is just one section of the book, and wasn't it really exciting? There are many more parts of the books that will keep you wondering what will happen next, read "The Night of the Twisters" by Ivy Ruckman to find out!

My cousin passed his copy of this book to me about 5 years ago. I'm not really that much of a reader, but I DO like hearing tornado survivor stories, so I decided to give it a shot. Oh. my. GOD. I could NOT put this book down once I started it! Sure enough, I finished the whole thing in one night, and after that, I must've read it about 10,000 more times. Whenever I had to do a report on any book I want in school I chose that one! The story is just, incredible(yea yea, I know that's a bold statement for an elementary-designed book, but still, i think it's THAT good!), the descriptions are just, so in-depth. You can really see Dan's emotions change as the day goes from being totally ordinary to the most incredible night of his life. And the details on how everyone in town was devestated by the storm, a loss for words!

DONT write this book off just cause it's designed for elementary school kids- it's an AMAZING book, one that you're sure to read 800,000 times in one week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I especially recommend it to those who like to read tornado survivor stories.

Having lived through this tornado on June 3rd, 1980 in Grand Island Nebraska, I appreciate the fact that someone took the time to write about what we all went through that night and the following days. I am buying the book to read to my children, so they can share the story of my family's adventure with the GI tornadoes. I am sure they will love reading this and hopefully someday they will read it to my grandchildren too, and they can say "my mom was there!"
THANKS for a great story based on such a great tragedy!

I have read this over 1 million times, and I still cant put it down. So much action, a must for anyone who loves to read tornado survivor's stories.