Where Only Storms Grow - by Alyssa Colman (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

SCHNEIDER FAMILY BOOK AWARD WINNER ● For Fans of the I Survived series and The War That Saved My Life, this gripping middle grade novel is set during one of the most dangerous storms in American history.

It's been four years since rain fell on the Oklahoma panhandle and the closeness between the Stanton twins has dried up as much as the land. Howe Stanton has been practicing running away and longs for the family to quit this land of dust where only troubles grow. Despite the scoliosis that causes Joanna Stanton near-constant pain, she isn't ready to give up like her brother. But when Daddy leaves the family behind to find work in California, saving the farm from ruin falls on Howe's unwilling and Joanna's uneven shoulders.

To pay the mortgage, Joanna takes a job at the local hospital and discovers purpose in helping others. Howe finds unexpected joy in caring for his father's horse and escapes in a borrowed book.

But then a tragedy in town reveals the dust's deadly dangers. With the worst storm of the Dust Bowl bearing down on their home, Howe and Joanna must put aside their differences and work together, or everyone and everything they love will be lost to the dust.

Don't miss Alyssa Colman's other books: The Gilded Girl and The Tarnished Garden

Review Quotes

Josette Frank Award Winner
Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
Lone Star Reading List Selection
Georgia Tome Book Award Winner
Kentucky Bluegrass Award Nominee
Bank Street Best Book of the Year and Josette Frank Award Winner

"Colman's writing is accessible and flawlessly incorporates historical details into the narrative." --Booklist

"Poignant and compassionate... Readers will be swept into the dusty setting of 1935 and be encouraged to grow in their understanding and empathy for people of the past." --School Library Journal

"Extremely well drawn... Colman's dedication to authenticity and rich detail creates a compelling world." --Kirkus

"A testament to human resilience in the face of insurmountable odds, Where Only Storms Grow is the poignant story of a family coming apart in a desperate attempt to stay together. Set in one of the most devastating periods in modern history, this story will hook readers from the first gripping sentence to the final satisfying page." - Megan E. Freeman, New York Times Bestselling author of Alone

"A triumph of a historical novel! Expertly immersing young readers in the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, Where Only Storms Grow offers a timely reminder of the ways our fragile environment connects us all. Joanna and Howe's extraordinary survival story both thrills and captivates with its messages of hope, determination, and love." - Kate Albus, author of A Place to Hang the Moon and Nothing Else But Miracles

"As powerful as a storm and as heartfelt as a warm embrace, Where Only Storms Grow is a timely story of strength and resilience that reminds us history is never very far away. Colman is an incredibly gifted storyteller who will sweep you back in time to a tale you'll want to revisit again and again." - Kalyn Josephson, New York Times bestselling author of the Ravenfall series

"Beautifully woven, Alyssa Colman's captivating Where Only Storms Grow is a masterful and moving tale of siblings re-finding one another in the most harrowing of human and environmental catastrophes--the Great Depression's Dust Bowl--and in themselves the courage to show kindness, to hang onto the lifeline of hope so easily blown away by storms of disaster. A gripping portrayal of the apocalyptic "dusters" that consumed the Midwest and a resilient family determined to survive--together." - L. M. Elliott, best-selling author of Bea and the New Deal Horse, winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction

About the Author

Alyssa Colman is an award-winning author who writes heartwarming stories for kids. Her novel, Where Only Storms Grow, won the 2026 American Library Association's Schneider Family Book Award, the 2026 Josette Frank Award, and is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection. Her other books include The Tarnished Garden and The Gilded Girl, both historical tales with a magical twist. Alyssa is a graduate of Wake Forest University and resides in Virginia.