“The splintered wood looked like teeth in a wide-open mouth. And it was coming right at him.”

This early quote establishes a mood of tension, fear, and imminent danger as author Tarshis describes a scene in which a broken house barrels toward Barry in the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina. In describing the splintered wood of the house as a “wide-open mouth,” Tarshis illustrates the massive size of the house, as if it is going to swallow Barry whole. Barry seems small, fallible, and fragile in comparison to the monstrosity heading right toward him, giving him only seconds to make a decision that will save his life.

“Barry wished he could find the courage to step forward and say, ‘Get off my property!’ […] If only Barry was more like his father. Nothing ever got to Roddy Tucker.”

Barry describes his frustration in being unable to stand up to the neighborhood bully, Abe. In expressing a desire to be more like his father, Roddy, Barry alludes to Roddy’s strength, composure, and presence, which act as an important guiding force for Barry. In highlighting his father’s strength, Barry also establishes himself in contrast: someone who does not feel he has inner strength of his own, and the accompanying insecurity Barry feels about this.

“Leaving town for a hurricane? Not the Tuckers! Never before. Every year a few storms fixed their sights on New Orleans, and they always petered out at the last minute. There hadn’t been a bad hurricane in New Orleans in forty years.”

Barry is surprised at his parents’ decision to leave their home in New Orleans in advance of Hurricane Katrina. Barry’s lack of anxiety about the storm at the beginning is because his family has never evacuated for any previous storm and New Orleans has not experienced a bad hurricane in 40 years.