Dust Storm! (Survivor Diaries) by Terry Lynn Johnson

Dust Storm! (Survivor Diaries #4)

Terry Lynn Johnson, Author

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Fiction, Nov. 6, 2018

Pages: 128

Suitable for Ages: 7-10

Themes: Dust Storm, Desert, New Mexico, Lost, Knowledge, Survival Skills, Courage

Synopsis:

Sixth-graders Jen Chiu and Martin Diaz are geared up to participate in one of the most exciting geocaching field trips ever in New Mexico’s Chihuahuan Desert.  Former best friends, Jen wants to find all of the caches before Martin does. When their van gets a flat tire in the middle of nowhere, the students help the teacher pass out water bottles and set up a tarp next to the bus for shade. Jen returns her backpack to the bus and discovers Martin peeking into the teacher’s briefcase to get the latitudes and longitudes for the upcoming competition. He darts from the bus to the trailer and grabs his mountain bike and takes off. Jen grabs her bike from the trailer and races after him.

When Jen catches up with Martin, she sees a wall of dirt rise high into the air.  A dust storm. They ride as fast as they can to stay ahead of it, but the blinding dust storm overpowers them. They are knocked off their bikes when they ride off a cliff they can’t see. Nothing looks familiar. The dust burns their eyes and skin, and is gritty in their mouths. They are far from their group and in the desert alone. They don’t have water, food, tools, proper clothing, sunglasses, and survival gear. They left their backpacks on the bus. Jen and Martin are lost. Night is falling, coyotes are calling, and small critters are crawling. They will have to use all of their knowledge and grit to survive.

Why I like this book:

Dust Storm! Survivor Diaries is a great adventure series that will get kids, especially reluctant readers, interested in reading. Terry Lynn Johnson has written a fast-paced series that is authentic and fun to read. Pen and ink drawings add to the drama of what is unfolding in the story.

The plot is engaging and the tension palpable. Dust Storm! focuses on Jen and Martin using skills they know after they get caught in a desert dust storm and become disoriented. What do they do first? How much time do they have before they become dehydrated? How do they  stay calm? What skills do they need most?

Dust Storm! is the fourth book in the Survivor Diaries. This series will have huge kid-appeal because the element of danger and the universal need to know what to do if you are unexpectedly caught in a situation where your life depends upon what you know. Johnson’s words of real-life advice are clear: Stay calm. Stay Smart. Survive. This is an important story for kids and families who like to hike to read together. It is also an excellent classroom book that belongs in every school library.

Johnson stories are inspired by true events. She began researching this desert story after she learning about two separate tragedies involving tourists who both died from dehydration after trying to walk for help after a car became stuck on a back road.

Resources: The best part of Johnson’s Survivor Diaries is that backmatter she includes: Survival Tips if you get you get lost and the bare essentials you need to carry while hiking a wilderness trail. After you’ve read the book, readers can visit her website to play the interactive Game – Will You Survive? 

Terry Lynn Johnson, author of Ice Dogs, Sled Dog School, and the Survivor Diaries (Overboard, Avalanche, Lost and Dust Storm) series, has lived in northern Ontario, Canada, for more than forty years. Before becoming a conservation officer, she worked for twelve years as a canoe-ranger warden in a large wilderness park. Visit Johnson at her website.

Greg Pattridge is the permanent host for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday posts on his wonderful Always in the Middle website. Check out the link to see all of the wonderful reviews by KidLit bloggers and authors.

*Purchased Copy.

Amanda in New Mexico by Darlene Foster

Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind

Darlene Foster, Author

Central Avenue Publishing, Fiction, Oct. 1, 2017

Suitable for Ages: 9-12

Themes: Adventure, School trip, New Mexico, Haunted hotel, Ancient pueblo, Ghosts

Synopsis: Amanda Ross is on a school trip to Taos, New Mexico with several of her fellow creative students. She shares a room with Cleo, an anxious classmate who insists she see ghosts. Although Amanda is determined to prove there is no such things, she can’t seem to shake the feeling that something or someone is watching her.

Join Amanda, Cleo and their funny friend, Caleb, as they visit a rugged and beautiful landscape where a traditional hacienda, an ancient pueblo, and a haunted and spooky hotel all hold secrets to a wild and violent past.

Does Cleo really see ghosts? Can Amanda escape the eerie wind that follows her everywhere? Perhaps The Day of the Dead will reveal the mysteries of Taos in this latest and adventure of Amanda’s travels series.

Why I like this book:

Darlene Foster has written another lively adventure story for young readers who enjoy traveling, exploring and solving a good mystery. Fans of the Amanda Travels series won’t be disappointed with this fast-paced book which will keep them on edge with a spooky plot and unexplained events.

The story is character driven. Amanda is a fun, upbeat, curious, caring and memorable character that readers will want as a friend — especially since she has keen radar and is always ready to solve a good mystery.  And, Amanda can’t resist a good mystery — even if it involves ghosts, cold breezes brushing her shoulders and unexpected incidents. Her friend Cleo is more sensitive to the presences around and finds it safer to sketch the sites they visit instead of explore. Caleb is more pragmatic, the group photographer and a good balance for Amanda.

Readers will learn about history, geography, architecture, artifacts and shiver at the presence of ghosts that are rumored to be haunting many of the places they visit in Taos — the Mable Dodge Luhan house, the Governor Bent Museum, the Taos Pueblo, the Rio Grande Gorge and bridge, Ojo Caliente hot springs, the Palisade Sills, the St. James Hotel, and the Enchanted Circle Pottery. They will have an opportunity to attend the Day of the Dead celebration.

Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind is the sixth book in the Amanda Travels series: Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask; Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting; Amanda in England: The Missing Novel; Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone; and Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music.  I recommend you start with the first book, but the Foster has written the books in such a manner that they can be read in any order.

Darlene Foster grew up on a ranch in southern Alberta. She dreamt of writing, travelling the world and meeting interesting people. She also believes everyone is capable of making their dreams come true. It’s no surprise that she’s now the award-winning author of a children’s adventure series about a travelling twelve-year-old-girl.  A world-traveler herself, Darlene spends her time in Vancouver, Canada and Costa Blanca in Spain. Visit her Darlene Foster at her website.

For the next few months Greg Pattridge will be hosting Marvelous Middle Grade Monday posts on his wonderful Always in the Middle website. Thank you Greg for keeping MMGM active while author Shannon Messenger is on tour promoting her sixth book, Nightfall, in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, which was released November 7.