Tom loves running through cow fields with his best friend, Peggy, and his dog, Amos—especially when he's pretending to be his favorite radio hero, the Lone Ranger.

But when Tom learns the nearby Fraser River is about to flood, he may have to become a real-life hero and help save his family's herd of dairy cows. This story is based on real events that happened in the farming community of Agassiz during the Fraser River flood of 1948.

The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Jacqueline Pearce is the author of 12 books for children and teens. Her novels and nonfiction explore her fascination with local history, people, nature and animals, including Dog House Blues and The Truth About Rats, which were written for the BC SPCA Kids Club. Jacqueline has degrees in English literature and environmental studies. She has volunteered for the BC SPCA humane education program for many years and has both fostered and adopted many rescued animals with her family. She currently lives near Vancouver with her husband, daughter, dog and two cats.

Jacqueline Pearce's profile page

Leanne Franson spent her childhood winters in Regina and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, building snow forts while her dad watched hockey games on TV. She was a really bad skater -- but she could draw really well! In 1991, after she finished her BFA in Montreal, she started illustrating books. Leanne is fluently bilingual and has worked on books in English and French, illustrating in total over 100 picture books, chapter books, and textbooks. In 2012, she and her teenage son Benn returned to Saskatchewan, where she draws and makes ceramics in her acreage studio.

Leanne Franson's profile page

• Commended, Bank Street College of Education Children's Book Committee Best Children's Books of the Year
• Commended, CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens

"Those librarians trying to feed the keen appetites of new chapter-book readers might offer Flood Warning, a book about responsibility set in an exciting crisis situation...Franson has been illustrating children’s books for several decades. I admire the way she conveys mood, time and place with a few lines...The generous number of illustrations of the happy dog and the stubborn cows will delight recent graduates from picture books as they proudly forge through this 'meaty' easy-reader."

Canadian Children's Book News

"A delightful and exciting story about a young boy who, in 1948, helped save the family cattle herd by using his wits and by helping his family. This story takes place in a much simpler time for children, a period when they learned from nature and used the skills that they developed from play and the hard work of doing chores and helping on the farm. This little snippet of history is an interesting insight into the past in British Columbia and will not only be a fun read for any child but a useful resource for the study of community and Canadian history for young children."

CM Magazine

"[Pearce] effortlessly weaves the story of friendship, co-operation, loyalty, family, unity, charity and selfless heroic efforts...The reality of the events [is] brought into perspective by the expressive and energetic pencil and watercolour illustrations...A heroic historical fiction novella for any child's library, expressing good values as well as a sense of adventure."

Resource Links

"Offers an accessible, well-paced read while conveying the nature of floods, from preparations—such as shoring up with sand bags and moving furniture upstairs—to the geological impact. There are suspenseful moments and light touches throughout...Black-and-white drawings of characters, rural settings, and scenarios provide historic flavor to the story, which is based on the real Fraser River flood of 1948."

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