Review: Storm Shelter by Raymond Payne

Storm Shelter by Raymond Payne is a vivid illustrated novel based on his 2004 novel Shelter from the Storm, which tells the tale of Juan “Johnny” Lopez and his plans to escape from a juvenile detention center.

With a fellow gang member to help him, Johnny thinks he has everything figured out. He will escape and tell anyone who will listen about the conditions at the facility. At the same time that Lopez is planning to obtain his freedom, Danny Matthews – a young boy who had spent a good part of his life in foster care – is on the outside worrying about if he has ruined his only chance at being adopted due to an incident while fishing with his soon to be grandpa Duck. Little do the boys know that a mysterious “woman in black” that haunts the island will cause them both issues during their adventures.

The underlying feel good element of the story doesn’t quite become apparent until about halfway through and kind of sneaks up on the reader when Johnny makes a decision to protect Danny from Aldo – a fellow gang member who has ulterior motives – even if it means that his escape from the juvenile facility ends up with him getting caught. Johnny sees a little bit of himself in Danny and feels a bond with him that grows stronger the longer they are together, lending the book a degree of tenderness within its story of adventure.

There are some places where head-hopping is very apparent and seems a bit out of place throughout the book. The author uses time shift annotation in the illustrations that are meant to fill in the timeline, but these don’t always work. The storyline seems to jump a bit too far into the future in quite a few places. The plot quickly recovers but it is a stumbling block. There is also one character in particular that seemed a bit of an afterthought. Donald, an escaped mental patient plays a very small role in the beginning and end of the book, though he’s one of the more interesting characters, so it’s a shame that he wasn’t developed further in the rest of the book.

The illustrations fit the tone of the book as well as the characters. This type of computer imagery doesn’t always work for book covers – including this one – but the faux-realistic imagery is quite impressive when used in panel illustrations, giving it the feel of a painted movie. The visuals makes each character’s personality come alive, with expressive faces that match the dialogue. It’s a unique experience and brings the reader into the story more than a straight fictional narrative.

While the illustrations aren’t wholly unique compared to other books using the same technique, the adaptation works as pure storytelling, as the plot is well thought-out and soundly written. The illustrations add another layer of intrigue to the story, making Storm Shelter both eye-catching and entertaining, and a successful project by the author.