Unfortunately Stormy Seas comes at an unsympathetic and ugly time for refugees in the United States and EU. It is a time where angry debates, pernicious laws and frankly hate speech and actions are directed towards them. Right now gates are closing to Syrian refugees and borders are tightening or closed to those who are desperate and fearful for their lives. It makes me heartsick. Fortunately we have Stormy Seas to remind us that this has been an historical struggle that has happened since the 1600's and probably before. She shows us how all over the country, yours and mine, children were turned away despite being in danger and this has happened over and over again. Her focus in on children who are young boat refugees. Some came with family and some did not. Their fear and suffering are evident yet these young children find a place and some peace as they become citizens in their new country. The book is visually arresting. Using collage, picture, paint and a myriad of styles the pictures shows us the perils and promise of their harrowing journeys.

Thank you to Netgalley who gave me this book to review for an honest opinion.

This is a stunning and captivating book. The topic is extrememly timely with the question of allowing refugees into the country in the news all the time and this book does a great job of putting that struggle into historical context. The images are a great combination of old photographs and bold artistic and graphic elements. The background given for the stories presented does not flinch away from the hard truths of its subjects lives and the fate of those on their ships but I don't think it's too graphic for it's upper elementary focus.

This book is a beautifully designed middle grades picture book about real kids who became refugees and escaped their homeland by boat. These short stories, about children from Germany, Vietnam, Cuba, and more, are sad and encouraging and very timely. Stormy Seas would be a great conversation starter with your children.

Through firsthand accounts, Stormy Seas: Stories of Young Boat Refugees offers a glimpse into the life of five refugees from all over the world. After a brief history of persecution dating back to the 1670s, Stormy Seas starts with Ruth, an 18 year old Jewish refugee from Germany in 1939 and travels with four more refugees through time ending with Mohamed, a 13 year old fleeing a civil war in the Ivory Coast in 2006.

Through the history and personal tales of these children, it is clear that history repeats itself again and again.

Stormy Seas provides invaluable insight into the harrowing experiences refugees face and also into the life and accomplishments that can be had when refugees are given a safe home.

For teachers, Stormy Seas is a great nonfiction resource for any unit on refugees or migration of people.

This is one of the best nonfiction books on migration I've seen ever. It ticks all the boxes on content, graphics, info graphics, context and background and seeing migration as a constant historical process not isolated events. This would tie in with curriculum in upper elementary to high school as it can be accessed at so many levels. Absolutely a must buy.

Stormy Seas

Stories of Young Boat Refugees



by Mary Beth Leatherdale

Annick Press Ltd.

Annick Press



Children's Nonfiction

Pub Date 11 Apr 2017

I am voluntarily reviewing Stormy Seas through the publisher and Netgalley:

We are reminded that for centuries, Refugees have been fleeing countries for centuries, to avoid religious persecution, or to get away from the dangers of war.

In 1939 18 year old Ruth leave on a ship to Havana Cuba, to flee from the Nazi's Hitler is in power and the danger of staying in Nazi occupied Germany is to great. Unfortunately the St. Lois is rejected at the Havana harbor and is forced to go back to Germany, some kill themselves or risk swimming the waters rather than face life in a Concencration Camp.

In 1979 Phu is fourteen years old, when his Mother pays a smuggler to put him on a boat to America. Phu spent eight months in the Pulau Bidong Refuge Camp, before he was flown to San Francisco to live with a cousin, two years later his Mother and siblings come to the U.S.

In 1980 Jose leaves Cuba, his parents opposed Fidel Castro, and communism. Jose's family moved to New York where his Grandmother lived then to New Jersey, he studied hard, learned English and is now an associate professor at Florida Southern College.

In the Year 2000 11 year old Nayeeba leaves Afghanistan to escape the Taliban. Nayeeba never heard of Australia or the Pacific Ocean because as a girl she was not allowed to go to school under Taliban rule. But in Australia they find themselves in a detention center, after six weeks in the detention center her family was sent to Tasmania, and then to Sydney after three years they were granted citizenship to Australia.

In 2006 Mohamed is 13 years old leaves Maple, Ivory Coast and in 2007 works in Guinea, Mali and Algeria to pay human traffickers to get him to Europe.

In 2008 he arrives in Libya where he is arrested and imprisoned for five months, in 2009 he crosses the Sea to Malta and is imprisoned in a Migrant camp. In 2010 he finally arrives in Italy.

I give Stormy Seas five out of five stars.

Happy Reading.

I thought this non-fiction book about kids who are refugees and sought asylum on boats was terrific. It's super topical right now and this will be a great book for talking to kids about what it might be like to have to flee your home. Maybe we should send this one to some of our lawmakers. At any rate, it will make a good addition to our library.

So timely due to current events. Horrifyingly so. History repeats itself over and over. This one is for elementary- to middle-grade kids and includes some beautiful artwork. You may think you don't need another story of immigration. You do. It is told chapter pictorially by chapter you meet another child from a war-torn part of the world. It focuses on boat refugees from WW2 until today. I feel like this volume is particularly useful because you can read it a chapter at a time and then rabbit trail into the country and time of history. I feel like this is a great tag along book if your older kids are reading This Land is Our Land.

I read a DRC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. We are reading through it slowly now as a part of our homeschooling. If I hadn't banned myself from buying books, I'd put this one in our home library.

Wow! What amazing timing! A book about boat refugees could not be more welcome right now. In this political climate of trying to limit the ability of people to emigrate to America because of their religion, it's wonderful to get a close and personal look at the history of immigration. According to this well-researched book, welcoming immigrants with open hearts and minds is as much a U.S. tradition as eating turkey on Thanksgiving or enjoying baseball games. The author introduces us to refugees from various countries and circumstances who, throughout the years, fled discrimination and hardship, and looked forward to seeing whether America could offer them them life and a chance at freedom. In 2017, can America still be the great hope for refugees? Stay tuned...and if you're so inclined, stay politically active. As Stormy Seas reminds us, America is too important to give up.

This book is fantastic!
Such a powerful book with vitality important stories.
I hope that school's everywhere will have this available to their students and even read it in class together.
The pictures and text are beautifully done and the colours used are great too.
Overall a perfect educational book for kids and young people! (And adults too!)

Stormy Seas is a book about immigration. It tells multiple individual stories about children migrating away from their homes to escape to a better place. The illustrations and photos help bring the story to life. Children will understand how serious and dangerous their lives became. It's frightening and eye opening.

The book gives information about where they're coming from, why, when, number of passengers, name of boat, destination, events that took place along the way, and their fate.

I highly recommend this book for schools, libraries, and parents.

A compelling story that should be told, must be told. I feel that the target audience should be 12-13 years of age. With the news from Aleppo and other countries, this is a timely review of history.

The thing about history, is that it repeats and repeats itself, and those of us who notice this know from past experience what to expect. This book is the story of refugees, stories told by them directly, or from source material. How long have their been people trying to escape their homeland for a new world? In the book, the time line stretches back to 1670, but that doesn't mean that was when the first refugees appeared.

In very simple language, the stories are those of Jews escaping the nazis, but told from the view of one individual. All these stories involve travel by sea, as that is the easiest way to escape. Besides the Jews, we also hear about the Vietnamese Boat people, boat people of Cuba, boat people from Afganistan and boat people from the Ivory Coast. Some have found much better lives in their new countries, others, although they are still alive, have not faired quite as well.

It is good to have books like this. Children may not see themselves in these boat children, but they can read their stories, and know that it could have happened to them. This is especially important in the current xenophobic world we are living in. I would highly recommend this book for schools and libraries.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.