St. Pete publisher offers free audio books for kids in preparation for hurricane season

Families lost homes, and businesses last year when so many frightening storms landed in the Tampa Bay area last hurricane season. The impacts were devastating for everyone, but Sparks Creative Stories wants to make sure that kids don’t go uninformed amidst the chaos.

A new book “Day of Disaster and Doom! How to Feel Safe When It’s Scary,” takes a look into how kids can be prepared and less tense for the upcoming hurricane season. It was published early last month and is available in English, Spanish and ASL.

The audiobook also includes visual art inspired by Tampa Bay artist Kirk Ke Wang’s hurricane forecast maps and is written by St. Pete playwright Sheila Cowley.

It’s performed in English by actor Vickie Daignault and Jim Sorenson, and translated and performed in Spanish by Associate Professor of Theatre at University of South Florida, Dora Arreola.

The book contains a very realistic perspective of what a kid may go through when facing a hurricane, from the confusion of putting plywood on the windows because “why would anybody want it dark inside?” and the sinister feeling of being unsafe in your own home.

Despite the uneasiness, “Day of Disaster and Doom!” focuses more on what they can control. Being prepared, sticking together and staying strong.

It walks kids safely through some of the circumstances that might come to pass during a hurricane such as evacuating to a city shelter, having a thorough emergency plan, and receiving help from friends and unlikely helpers.

The main character in the book is always prepared for anything life may throw at her—from an alien invasion to a giraffe stampede—thanks to a “save the day kit.” Her little brother Bert is less confident in the face of such disasters, so throughout their evacuation and encounters with the storm she is able to help Bert feel less anxious.

After returning to their damaged home, the family is overcome with heartache, but through sticking together and getting help from the community they are able to uplift each other and raise their spirits.

The main character never mentions her own name, but Cowley told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that her narrator is telling her own story “and doesn’t ever mention her own name, so kids can imagine themselves as the main character who’s having these experiences and taking action throughout.”

“Day of Disaster and Doom! How to Feel Safe When It’s Scary” is just one of many free illustrated audiobooks that have been published by Sparks Creative Stories. The company launched during the Covid-19 pandemic when it would perform bedtime plays via phone by connecting actors with the audience calling from home.

Now, Sparks shares stories and brings them to life through visuals that are created by scientists, internationally-known artists and even by kids.

The new kids book “Day of Disaster and Doom! How to Feel Safe When It’s Scary” is available for free via YouTube.

UPDATED 06/02/25 10:20 p.m. Updated to note that the book is performed  by Vickie Daignault, Jim Sorenson, and Dora Arreola.

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This article appears in May 29 – Jun 4, 2025.