I Survived the Joplin Tornado, 2011

Lauren Tarshis's I Survived the Joplin Tornado, 2011 is a gripping true-disaster story for 7 year olds about a boy who's dreamed for years of seeing a real twister.

What happens

Dex James lives in Joplin, Missouri, where it feels like half the town is family. His big brother Jeremy is a Navy SEAL, away on a top-secret mission. At school everyone suddenly wants Jeremy stories. Dex has started lying awake counting the ways his brother could get hurt.

Then a famous storm chaser from Dex's favourite TV show nearly runs him over (his dog Zeke knocks him out of the way). Dr Gage turns out to be an old college friend of Dad's. And he invites Dex along on a chase!

Can you imagine? Firing little recording balloons up into a storm cloud from a converted paintball gun. Dex can hardly believe it either.

But the storm that day doesn't do what anyone expected. By the time a flash of lightning shows them the tornado hidden in the rain, it's heading straight for Joplin.

This really happened, and the book tells you so right at the start. The Joplin tornado in 2011 killed 158 people, and the opening describes houses torn apart and trucks flying through the air.

So here's a proper heads-up. It's frightening in places. Dex is inside the tornado in the car, and afterwards he finds Dr Gage badly hurt, with a deep wound in his leg that Dex has to bandage on his own (the bone is mentioned). For a child who's anxious about storms, or about someone they love being far away and in danger, this might be one to read together.

For a child who's fascinated by extreme weather, it's very hard to put down. There's loads of real science. Supercells, hailstones, why your ears pop when a tornado is near. And Dex is brave in a very ordinary way. He's scared the whole time and does the next right thing anyway.

It's gentle about the worry underneath, too. Missing a brother. Not knowing if he's safe. A lot of families will recognise that.

What to read next

If they want another real disaster seen through a child's eyes, try I Survived the Eruption of Mount St Helens, 1980. Jess and her two best friends are in the forest near the mountain on the day it blows.