Selvakumar Knew Better by Virginia Kroll is based on the real story of a dog that saved a seven-year-old boy. Selvakumar sensed a mighty earthquake and tsunami before his human family did. They wondered, casually, about a distant roar—was it thunder, a supersonic plane, a train? It was none of those things. It was the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004. When young Dinakaran sought safety in his house, Selvakumar dragged the boy outside by his shirt, then guided him to higher ground.
This is a story about relationships, and Xiaojun Li’s unique style of illustration appropriately focuses on the characters. An author’s note has a picture of the real-life Selvakumar and his human family. There are many internet links marking the 20-year anniversary of this disaster. My lesson has references for two links that seemed the most child friendly.
This book is read aloud
online by a young child, which may not appeal to the older reader. It is at christine’s english read
aloud.
My Picture Book Talk for this story is here.
