Find Hooper Finds A Family: A Hurricane Katrina Dogs Survival Tale Authored By Jane Paley Available As Publication
is the cutest kinda, sort of, retriever that I have ever seen, He lives in New Orleans with his family who love him, However, Hurricane Katrina changes his life, Paley describes in great detail how Hooper
is left at home with the coming of that most destructible hurricane, The book is told from the dog's point of view so the reader can visualize the dangers that he lives through,
He does survive and is taken to a shelter where he is hoping to go back home, But, that is not possible, The shelter lady strives to find a home for him, She drives him to a place where he meets his new owner, They just happen to live in New York City,
Hooper learns to live in a new home with a new family,
Hooper Finds A Family was a delightful read for an upper elementary reader, It would make a wonderful read aloud, Fast paced read told from dog's perspective, You just want the puppy to survive and succeed, Adorable cover, plus photos of the real dog adopted by the author, If you love animals, if you have felt homesick, or if you have struggled to find your place in a new environment, you will enjoy this book.
Cute story based on the author's true adopted hurricane Katrina rescued dog, It definitely was a skillfully woven blend of fact and fiction and reminded me of our own Hurricane Francis rescue dog and how we always liked to make up stories of her life before and during the hurricane.
If only rescue dogs could tell their stories in human speak! Title: Hooper Finds A Family
A Hurricane Katrina Dogs Survival Tale
Author: Name Paley
ISBN:
Publisher: Harper
“My life before Hurricane Katrina was the best.
Living with Mamma and George I never had to worry about where my next meal came from or where I would sleep, But, then something happened to change that and my world came crashing down, Listening to the humans speak and understanding what they were saying, I hoped they could tell from the expression on my face that I wanted to go with them wherever they traveled.
Unfortunately, that was not to be, Leaving me a hardy meal and some water Mamma and George took off in their truck promising one of them would return for me, I settled down and ate my meal and felt all alone for the first time in my life, As I was looking for a safe place to sleep for the night the sky filled up with dark clouds and the rain began to fall.
At first the rain came down in small droplets and then in torrential downpours, which really frightened me and chilled me to the bone, With no one in sight I searched for a safer place to weather the storm, My name is Jimmy and this is my story, I am a yellow Labrador puppy, kind of small and some think puny, I was separated from my family in Lake Charles Louisiana, A terrible hurricane strikes the land and now I have to find a new home and family, ”
Author Jane Paley relates a heartwarming, true story about a brave dog named Jimmy/Hooper that finds his way from New Orleans to New York City in search of a new family.
Cleverly written and narrated in the first person by the dog, you hear his inner thoughts, fears understand his actions and interactions, as he meets some ornery animals when he finally arrives at his first destination.
Courageous, brave, feisty and full of spunk this amazing dog never gives up despite any obstacles that come his way,
Jimmys first destination, after being rescued is a shelter for animals, is a metal cage, where he is not very happy, Learning how to get along with the other animals there would be equally as challenging as living through Hurricane Katrina, Jimmy refused to lose hope, A volunteer named Chrissie arrived at the shelter and things were about to change, Chrissies job was to find him a new family,
First impressions can make or break a situation, Jimmys new dad did not take to him at all, Jane, his new mom did, Understanding that he needed reassurance and kindness, Jane sat in the back with him holding him close, Renaming him Hooper and trying to make him feel apart of their family would take hard work and patience,
Author Jane Paleys firstperson narrative account of this puppys ordeal is based on the actual events of a true story, Jimmys story is quite unique and he tells it in his own special way, The storms he weathered, not just during Katrina are vividly described and Jimmys underlying fear that he could be sent back to the shelter are heard loud and clear.
Taking his first bath, fearful of the water, thinking he might drown, it takes a lot of patience on Janes part to reassure him that he is safe.
Standing up to the meanest dog in the park, impressing one beautiful collie named Willow and facing up to the squirrels in the park, allows Hooper takes his first step to becoming a New York dog.
Hooper tries his best to become part of this family, But, Larry his new Dad does everything in his power to make him feel unwanted until something happens that just might change his mind A heartwarming tale of survival, overcoming fears, adjusting to a new life, Hooper is one special dog that everyone will fall in love with.
“My name is Hooper, read my story, ”
Without rescue shelters many of our unwanted or abandoned pets would not find homes, Thanks to the many who rescued Hooper and found him a home, This review is dedicated to all of those dogs that found homes and to my mother in laws dog Randi who was one of the lucky ones.
Jimmy was an unassuming little pup, at least in all the ways a little lab should be.
Food and water were plentiful, Love was never in short supply, Treats ah yes . treats were wonderfully delicious. Every day Momma would make him something delightful for breakfast, George would pat him on the head on his way out to work and the rest would take care of itself.
Then one day, a storm came like no other, Momma and George had to hightail it out of there leaving Jimmy with a promise to return shortly, . . but shortly never came leaving this little fuzzy scared and alone as he struggled to survive, It wasn't simply a matter of being patient for his humans to come back home, The rising waters and dangerous winds wreaked havoc on one and all, just imagine being tiny and small in an outside world you only knew from your front yard! Scary.
. . OO
Thank goodness our little Jimmy was resourceful, yes, to put your mind at ease, he makes it, With the help of a little otter, he learns to work with the waters not against them, With the help of Mother Nature, he manages to be fed, . . and narrowly escape death a few dozen times, Eventually, with the help of man, he is rescued not once but THREE times, On his continuing journey he will make friends, learn from the hardened soul of another dog, find his voice, and maybe even a soul mate along the way, He will go from Jimmy to TJ to Hooper but no matter what his name, he will remind the sweet spirited pup dealt a hard hand by life that came out on top.
In summary, a touching read and much more emotional than one might first perceive but a story that was meant to be shared.
Recommended reading for young readers and beyond, though I do caution parents, little ones may need some reassurance along the way, What Hooper goes through is harsh and seeing anyone in such a bad situation can be hard let alone a small puppy, but it is REAL. Just be there to remind them things turn out okay and how they can help other pets reach their own happy endings, Happy reading! i read this book in third grade, and one day during silent reading i was so in to the book that i thought it was raining outside but it wasnt and when i realized that it was actually sunny out i though hmm maybe i am crazy and the rest of the day felt so off, it was wild.
mustve been a good book though, Personal Response: The Author wrote this book as if she had experienced this herself, Its a true story, so to see what not only this little puppy, but also many others went through during new Orleans, is truly saddening.
The book also showed everything rescuers, and locals did to help, . On top of clean up they re homed hundreds of animals
Plot Summary: Hooper finds himself home alone when his mother and father go to visit some family.
Thinking he will be fine, he shortly finds himself stuck in a hurricane swimming down the streets, Fighting the current, water snakes, and his new otter friend, he eventually is picked up by a rescuer and taken to a shelter, Not long after he is rehomed in New York, As he struggles through learning to get his family to like him, and figuring his way around town and new friends, Hooper finally learns that although he misses his old family, he has a new one.
And family is more important than anything,
Characterization: Hooper the main character is a retriever puppy who takes a hard turn and a very long journey from new Orleans all the way to San Francisco.
Mama and George are Hoopers original parents who we dont see after the hurricane, Jane and Larry are Hoopers new parents in New York, and Brain is Hoopers new little brother, who loves baseball and loves hanging out with both Hooper and his friends.
Recommendation: I recommend this book to anyone really, young people, all the way to seniors, There is absolutely no inappropriate content at all, and its a true story following a little puppies journey to another part of the country,
Cute story written from Hoopers perspective, Myyo daughter greatly enjoyed this read aloud, When Hurricane Katrina swept through New Orleans and busted the levees, over onequarter of a million pets, from dogs to goldfish, were left behind as their families raced out of the path of destructive.
Animal rescue workers spent countless hours trying to round them up, get them back to their families, and in many cases, find them new families.
Hooper Finds a Family: A Hurricane Katrina Dogs Survival Tale tells the tale of one of those dogs, Hoopers family, like many pet families, left him behind when the storm started, assuming theyd be back to get him quickly, They were good people who loved Hooper, then called Jimmy, very much , but the circumstances prevented them from getting back to him in time, Hooper is swept away with the flood, saved by an otter who teaches him how to “go with the flow,” and gets rescued by a man in a yellow rain coat.
But Hoopers rescue is just the beginning, He still has to find a new family and learn to adapt in a world much different than the one in which he came from.
Hooper Finds a Family is written for children and told through the eyes of the little yellow lab puppy, Since its written for middlegrade kids, the language is relatively simple and the horrors of Katrina are kept to a minimum, Author Jane Paley doesnt sugarcoat it, but its not going to give your children nightmares, Im a crier when it comes to animal stories, so I of course bawled when poor Hooper was scared and lost in the torrents, and again when he was terrified of meeting his new family especially since the dad wasnt all that thrilled about him at first, and of course again when everything worked out for the sweet, “good ol boy” puppy.
This is a great book to help younger children understand the ramifications of that hurricane, and to inspire them to think of ways they could help other animals in the same situation as Hooper.
Its also excellent for helping children learn about adapting to a new environment, such as a new school in a different city, as Hooper travels from Louisiana to New York City and learns to fit in with the city dogs.
Hoopers braveness, especially in the face of the first storm he goes through after being rescued, is definitely inspiring, I would recommend this book for agesand up,
Although the book is told from the point of view of the dog, Hooper Finds a Family is based on a true story.
Today, Hooper works as a therapy dog and inspires children to read by accompanying Jane to schools and libraries for story time, Part of the proceeds from the book go towards Labsrescue, the organization that brought Jane and Hooper together, In Hooper Finds a Family, Hoopers tale has a happy ending, but there are still hundreds of thousands of animals out there waiting for their own happy ending.
Please keep that in mind when youre considering adding a new fourlegged or twolegged in the case of birds, or nolegged in the case of fish member to your family.
Reading this with my son it's a nice antidote to Salvage the Bones, another dog in Katrina story, Cute story, I liked it more while the dog was in New Orleans, Kind of found his NY family a bit annoying, especially the dad Larry, But alls well that ends well, Definitely a happier ending than Salvage the Bones, This book is about a dog who survives Hurricane Katrina, I think a good theme for this book is you have to learn to love other things/people, One example of this is when the Hurricane comes in and he has to leave his family behind and try to find a new one to love.
Another example is in the end of the book when he finally realizes he has a new family who loves him and then he starts to love them back.
UMMM THE NOSTIGALA!!! I READ THIS/YEARS AGO!! it was really thest chapter book I read by myself I just always remember my librarian recommending it to me and it took me so long to read likemonths, which it still takes me read books lol.
Idk remember any of it lol butcuz why not!!! A nice introduction to younger children about the experiences of animals in the storm and flood of Katrina.
Told completely from the perspective of a dog who was rescued by his new family, My son has been laughing at Hooper's introduction to New York and the ideas of the puppy in response to his new family's desires for him to learn certain things and behave in certain ways.
He definitely prefers the happy ending to the start of the book before and immediately after Hooper was rescued, A good story for dog lovers, though the beginning of the story is tough Hooper, then Jimmy, struggles to survive the Hurricane, Very positive ending, of course, Told from Hooper's point of view, he has trouble adjusting to NYC from Louisiana, Pair this story with The Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship and Survival, .