The Storm: How Young Men Become Good Men by Daniel Blanchard is like a full-life lesson in an easy-to-explain format for young men and women! Blanchard tells the story from a teen’s point of view as he has a conversation with the grandfather he rarely sees. As young Dakota calls him, Grandaddy has come to him on his special day to tell him all of the secrets to life and how to live it to its fullest. Dakota isn’t happy with his whole life. He is a great athlete, but his father is abusive and absent, and his older brother is in and out of jail. Dakota doesn’t like how his life is going and doesn’t understand why Grandaddy doesn’t come around, except he knows it has something to do with Pops, but today of all days he doesn’t want to talk about Pops.
This is a well-organized book with many easy-to-understand lessons for someone of any age or gender.
Grandaddy tells Dakota of his life during the war, “Dr. Deming taught that quality was not just a matter of meeting certain standards, but rather was a living, breathing process of never-ending
improvement.”
One of the most moving things Blanchard says that is so perfectly fitting to the angst of our society currently in the United States was when he is talking about respect and how using someone’s name when speaking to or about them shows respect:
“Back then, people said the whole name… The United States of America. It was like it meant more back then. Now, people don’t say it like that. Now they just say USA.”
As an educator, I would encourage parents and teachers to read this to, or with, their children. It is an easy read, and easy to understand, and Blanchard gets right to the point on all issues, not leaving any room for stagnant explanations.
My only complaint would be the title; it conveys that this book is a message to boys only and it really is a great book for all people, any gender, and any age!
Stine Writing 
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