Making sense of disasters

Natural disasters, with their magnitude of destruction, can be mind-boggling to children who can be horrified, and unable to make sense of them. Heck, we grownups cannot make any sense of them! It does help, however, to understand them, and deal with the unease they cause, (even when not directly affected) in a child sensitive to such things, if a parent can sit down and explain things to them. More so if a book dealing with the disaster can be used to explain things. It is so much easier to understand through empathising with kids of a similar age going through with and dealing with a similar situation.

There are some books that could be used for talking about the tsunami in Japan. One such is 'My Friend, the Sea' written by Sandhya Rao, published by Tulika books. This was written after the 2004 tsunami that affected the eastern coast of India.

Another beautiful book, is 'The Big Wave'.  I read this book a while ago, but it has stayed with me, and it is currently at the top of my mind. A children's book by the Pulitzer prize winner for her book 'The Good Earth', Pearl S. Buck, also a Nobel prize winner, literature, in 1938. She was the daughter of missionary parents, and was born in China, spending most of her childhood and youth in China and Japan.

Pic courtesy flipkart

THE BIG WAVE
Written by Pearl S. Buck
Published by HarperCollins
Ages 9-12 yrs

Jiya and Kino were friends who lived in Japan. Kino was a farmer's son, and lived on a farm high up the slope of a mountain. A mountain, moreover, that was a volcano a very long, long time ago. His father always told him that they would be in danger if the volcano ever erupted again.

From his home, he could look down upon the big, blue ocean, near which was a fishing village where his friend Jiya, the son of a fisherman lived. Jiya had a house very near the sea, but had no window looking out to the sea. Kino could not understand this, as the ocean seemed very beautiful to him. Also, the fishermen are dependent on the sea for their very livelihood. Jiya however, does not agree with him, and tells him that his father says that the ocean is a grave danger.

Neither boy can quite understand the other's outlook. Until one day, an undersea volcano erupts and triggers off a massive tsunami- the big wave.

What happens next? How do both Jiya and Kino deal with their loss?

A wonderfully written book for young readers, which answers many questions that might occur to them about the tsunami and disasters in general. Pearl S. Buck's distinctive style is apparent even in this children's book, and we get a wonderful sense of atmosphere, learning a lot about the people that she knows so much about. In the boys' coming to terms with and dealing with the calamity, we learn a lot about this terrible force of nature that can annihilate in seconds.

Winner of the 'Child Study Association's Children's Book Award'.

Crossposted on Saffrontree.