Tornado

The narrator tells the present-tense parts of the story in the first person. The narrator is not described, either physically or in much other detail. The narrator’s gender is never clarified. One of the children of the family that spends the novel waiting in the storm cellar, the narrator is characterized primarily by their investment in Pete’s stories. When Pete begins to introduce the turtle story, the narrator says, “‘Was it your turtle?’ to get him started” (21), which indicates the importance of story to the narrator. Similarly, when Pete starts to introduce the story of losing Tornado to his original owners, he notes that it was the saddest day in his life, and he hates to tell the story. The narrator still asks him to tell it. While the narrator admires Pete, they still feel the need to hear the story. Because both Pete and the narrator are the first-person speakers in the novel, their experiences are paired. Both must develop resilience in the face of natural disasters and share certain aspects of their childhood experience. The narrator is observant and devoted to the rest of the family, observing specific details of the storm cellar and worrying about Link alongside the other members of the family.

Tornado is a large, black dog that arrives when his doghouse is blown to Pete’s family home during a tornado. Tornado is described as patient and self-controlled. During the card trick, he waits as Pete fans out the cards and instructs him to pick a card. When he finds Carey’s turtle, he keeps it safe in his mouth even though he wants to run, prioritizing what he sees as his mission to protect the small turtle at the expense of his own comfort. Similarly, Tornado is described as purposeful. Compared to the family’s previous dog, Tornado doesn’t dig holes only for amusement but only when he has a specific reason for needing a hole. Tornado is communicative and intelligent, finding ways to tell Pete when he needs something.

Just as Pete develops a strong affinity for Tornado, the dog eventually chooses Pete as his owner. Even though he returns to his original family, Tornado comes back to find Pete and then stays for seven happy years.

Pete’s father functions as a secondary character in the novel. His main defining characteristic is using humor and positivity to cope with difficult situations. For example, when the tornado rips the roof off their home, the first thing Pete’s father says is, “Well, I’m surprised to find myself alive” (7). Despite the devastation caused by the storm, he is determined to find the good in things, observing first that everyone is unharmed. When the family goes to inspect the damage, Pete’s father notes that it was about time for a new roof anyway, and Pete thinks about how his father “always tried to find the good in something” (8). Therefore, Pete’s father represents the novel’s theme of Resilience in the Face of Natural Disaster. While it is objectively negative that the storm has destroyed their home, Pete’s father uses an attitude of positivity to find the good in things and inspire the family to keep going.

When the other family identifies Tornado as their dog, Buddy, Pete’s father experiences internal conflict. He tells the other man that Pete has become fond of the dog but then says that he rightfully belongs to the other family. He is sympathetic to his son’s needs and how much Pete loves Tornado, but he also has a strong sense of justice and knows that the dog really belongs to the other family. He is pleased when Tornado returns not only because it is what his son wants but also because it enables him to both do what he sees as the right thing and tell his son he can keep the dog. He seems to enjoy telling Pete that the other man didn’t give his name or address, so they wouldn’t be able to return Tornado even if they wanted to.

Pete’s mother is a minor character in the novel. She is characterized through her dialogue and her interactions with her children. Her first defining detail is her ability to predict when a storm is coming. She says, “I smell a storm,” and Pete then “shivered a little, because my mother’s nose was always right” (6). In addition to her uncanny ability to predict storms, she is described as being protective of her children. For example, when Pete suggests that he will pull Tornado out of the doghouse, she quickly instructs him not to put his hand inside in case he is bitten. She is devoted to the family’s needs, preparing dinner and calling for suppertime every evening. She frequently attempts to intervene in her children’s squabbles, attempting to ban Pete and Sammy from playing War “because that’s what it turned into” (14) and coming out “to referee” when Emma Lou accuses her brothers of taking Carey’s turtle. Pete’s mother gives the boys “a little talking-to about playing jokes on people” (23).