Severe and Unusual Weather

In this beautifully crafted novel by Jessie Ann Foley, a young girl discovers that the strongest storms aren’t always the ones you can see coming. When Nadine arrives in Centralia, Illinois, she has one goal: survive until her mom gets out of rehab. She’s learned the hard way to keep her head down and her heart locked up tight.

But then there’s Francis Pepper—the kid everyone picks on, born the exact day a devastating tornado tore through town and took his mother’s life. When Nadine is paired with Francis for a school project about the Great Tornado of the New Millennium, she’s pulled into a mystery she never expected. A strange book. Instructions for summoning weather. And whispers of secrets the town has kept buried for years.

As Nadine and Francis dig deeper into what really happened that terrible day, they uncover something even more powerful than the truth about the tornado: the courage to let down their guards and trust someone else. Foley crafts a tender story about two kids learning that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is reach out your hand to another person who needs it just as badly as you do.

Perfect for readers who loved The Bridge Home and The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, this is a story about resilience, found family, and the fierce determination it takes to weather life’s most difficult storms. A moving exploration of what it means to be truly seen—and to finally belong.

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