T-s-u-n-a-m-i-s

Peg Kehret has written many wonderful books and she is well known for her “disaster” books. Escaping the Giant Wave, 2003 has to be one of her best.

Kyle Davidson is winding up his 6^th grade year with an writing assignment to list things he would change about his life. One of them is to make bully, Daren Hazelton leave him alone. When Kyle’s father wins a vacation to Oregon, the family is excited about staying on the beautiful Oregon coast in a luxury hotel. When they arrive, they find the accommodations are less than they expected. Still the beach is beautiful and Kyle and his sister BeeBee are enjoying their stay until Daren Hazelton and his family arrive. As they explore the beach they notice a sign.

“There’s a sign sticking out of the sand,” BeeBee said. She ran ahead to see what it said, then rushed back to report, “It’s a warning sign! It says the Oregon coast might get hit by a t-s-u-n-a-m-i.” She spelled out the word. …

Dad read the instructions for escaping a tsunami. “Protect yourself during the earthquake. As soon as it stops, go inland and uphill. Do not go to the beach, even after a tsunami wave hits. Wait for official notice that it’s safe before returning to the beach.” He quit reading and looked at us. “You got that?" We all nodded.

I am glad I had not read this book before my daughter visited the Oregon coast this summer. It would have made me too nervous.