What Storm, what Thunder
Books | Fiction / Literary
4.2
Myriam J. A. Chancy
At the end of a long, sweltering day, an earthquake of 7.0 magnitude shakes the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. Award-winning author Myriam J. A. Chancy masterfully charts the inner lives of the characters affected by the disaster--Richard, an expat and wealthy water-bottling executive with a secret daughter; the daughter, Anne, an architect who drafts affordable housing structures for a global NGO; a small-time drug trafficker, Leopold, who pines for a beautiful call girl; Sonia and her business partner, Dieudonné, who are followed by a man they believe is the vodou spirit of death; Didier, an emigrant musician who drives a taxi in Boston; Sara, a mother haunted by the ghosts of her children in an IDP camp; her husband, Olivier, an accountant forced to abandon the wife he loves; their son, Jonas, who haunts them both; and Ma Lou, the old woman selling produce in the market who remembers them all. Brilliantly crafted, fiercely imagined, and deeply haunting, What Storm, What Thunder is a singular, stunning record, a reckoning of the heartbreaking trauma of disaster, and--at the same time--an unforgettable testimony to the tenacity of the human spirit.
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More Details:
Author
Myriam J. A. Chancy
Pages
313
Publisher
Tin House
Published Date
2021
ISBN
1951142764 9781951142766
Community ReviewsSee all
"A memorable collection if voices amidst not only destruction, but compassion and healing. Tackling the emotional, physical, and interpersonal wounds inflicted by natural disaster, poverty, grief, our cast of characters are striking, expressive, and real in the most important ways. "
Emily
"Each chapter looks at the 2010 earthquake in Haiti through the eyes of a different yet interconnected character, some of which are easier to connect with than others."
Ricki Marking-Camuto
"This is a fictionalized account of people affected by the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Each chapter is the account of a different person from their point of view. I liked the ways the characters connected and saw one another, and the variety of experiences that are included. Unfortunately to me there were too many similar characters (though I loved Sonia and I liked Anne's perspective) and I wasn't a fan of the first person POV, especially for characters who died during the story.<br/><br/>3.5 stars rounded up"
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