Tornado [Hardcover]

Betsy Cromer Byars (Author), Doron Ben-Ami (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up

When a doghouse landed in the backyard during a tornado, the family wasn't really surprised. What did surprise them was that there was a dog inside, whom they named Tornado. Each chapter of this gently humorous book by award-winning author Betsy Byars tells a different adventure, and together they chronicle how this unique dog becomes a special part of the family.

00-01 Minnesota's Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award Masterlist

00 Natn'l Christian School Assoc. Children's Crown Classic Award

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 3^-5. When a tornado is sighted, a boy's family rushes to the storm cellar. Anxious about the father, who's still in the cornfield, they listen to the storm overhead and to the stories related by their farmhand, Pete, about Tornado, the dog he knew and loved as a boy. Framed by the progress of the current twister, the five interior chapters are Tornado tales. The first concerns a storm that blew the dog and his doghouse into Pete's life; another tells of Tornado's dealings with a cat; yet another relates the dog's ability to do a card trick. One full-page, shaded pencil drawing appears in each chapter. The episodes are fairly short and the print large. The handsome illustrations by Doron Ben-Ami give the volume a more distinguished, less juvenile look than the typical chapter book and convey the story's drama, warmth, and occasional humor. Parents and teachers will find this an excellent book to read aloud, and dog lovers of any age will find it irresistible. Carolyn Phelan

About the Author

Betsy Byars is a widely read and loved author of many award-winning middle-grade books for children, including Summer Of The Swans (Viking), a 1971 Newbery Medal winner. The Pinballs was an ALA Notable Children's Book in 1977 as well as the basis for an ABC Afterschool Special. Other books she has written for HarperCollins are Good-bye, Chicken Little; The Seven Treasure Hunts, illustrated by Jennifer Barrett; and three I Can Read Books, the popular The Golly Sisters Go West, Hooray For The Golly Sisters!, and The Golly Sisters Ride Again, all illustrated by Sue Truesdell. Ms. Byars lives in Clemson, South Carolina, with her husband.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers; 1st edition (June 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060264497
• ISBN-13: 978-0060264499
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,304,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Betsy Byars began her writing career rather late in life First, she married and started a family. The writing career didn't emerge until she was 28, a mother of two children, and living in a small place she called the barracks apartment, in Urbana, Illinois. She and her husband, Ed, had moved there in 1956 so he could attend graduate school at the University of Illinois. She was bored, had no friends, and so turned to writing to fill her time. Byars started writing articles for The Saturday Evening Post, Look,and other magazines. As her family grew and her children started to read, she began to write books for young people and, fortunately for her readers, discovered that there was more to being a writer than sitting in front of a typewriter. "Once a wanderer came by my house and showed me how to brush my teeth with a cherry twig; that went in The House of WingsThe Summer of the Swans." Since that time, Byars has written more than 45 books for young readers and has won numerous awards, including The American Book Award, which she received in 1981 for The Night Swimmers. The humor, compassion, and insight Byars brings to each of her books won her a large audience of admirers both in the United States and abroad. Six of her novels were presented on national television, and her books are translated into nine languages. Six of Byars' novels have been named ALA Notable Books, and in 1971, The Summer of the Swans -- a story about a 14-year-old girl and her mentally retarded brother -- won the Newbery Award as the most distinguished contribution to literature for children in the year of its publication. Byars was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, on August 7, 1928. Unlike many of the characters in her books, Byars grew up in a normal, loving family. Her father was an engineer and worked as a bookkeeper in a cotton mill. He was stern and hardworking and had a strong sense of humor. Her mother was a lively woman who loved acting and music. Byars's sister, Nancy, two years older, was sometimes an inspiration and sometimes an evil nemesis. Byars has always been adventurous and never allows a few setbacks to prevent her from doing things she wants to experience, like petting a blacksnake and flying planes. The snake was named Moon and became the subject of her 1991 autobiography, The Moon and I. Betsy Byars and her husband live on an air strip in South Carolina, and have traveled widely throughout the United States in pursuit of their interest in gliding and antique airplanes. They have four grown children and seven grandchildren.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great, heart-warming, reinforces pets, kids WANT to read, July 16, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (St. Augustine, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tornado (Trophy Chapter Book) (Paperback)

Great story, with great illustrations. This book held the attention of my 8yo active son, and he enjoyed reading it. The illustrations make you feel as if you are actually touching the dog. What made it even better was that we own a black lab, identical to the one drawn in the book, and our lab came from the local pound. Hit home!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Flying Dog, November 17, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Tornado (Trophy Chapter Book) (Paperback)

This book is easy to read but it is heart warming. It shows you how much he loved Tornado. It shows how broken hearted when his dog was taken away from him. You fell so badly for him. How could any one do that to him?

The book is about a family who has to go into a storm cellar because a twister is coming. Pete tells the family about his dog he uses to own named, Tornado. His dog was great. He could do card tricks and did what he was told. One day he brings Tornado to town with his dad. They are gone about an hour and a family comes and sees Tornado in the truck and starts yelling, "Look, it is Buddy!"So he has to give Tornado up to the family.

Will they get Tornado back? Will they ever get out of the storm celler? Just read the book to find out. I think this book is great for childern ages 7-10 or if you just want to read a short book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TORNADO BY BETSY BAYARS, December 6, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Tornado (Trophy Chapter Book) (Paperback)

Have you read tornado?If you havn't I will tell you about.It is about a guy telling the people that live with him about when he was a kid and he found a dog an called him tornado Tornado because they found him after a tornado passed by. Close to the end when his dad and him road to the town to buy food he left tornado in back of the truck then when he came back he saw a girl hugging Tornado she said " oh I missed you so much". Then he starts to cry and tornado had to go with his real owner. I won't tell you if he gets Tornado back or not. Well my opinion is that this is a great book . So read this book.