I Came From the Water

Author(s) Vanita OelschlagerMike Blanc
Illustrator(s)
Age Group 4-8
Publisher Vanita Books
ISBN 978-0983290452
Year 2012

The story is based on the experiences of Moses, an eight year-old boy and resident of St. Helene’s orphanage in Haiti. As an infant, he was plucked from the waters of a nearby river, having been placed in a basket. The rest of his family perished in floods that wiped out their upland village in 2004. After the earthquake of 2010 destroyed Port-au-Prince and much of the surrounding area, the orphanage was flooded with a new wave of parentless boys and girls. Moses helped these children adapt to their new lives and in so doing, displays a fearless hope and determination that may lead to Haiti’s renewal as a self-supporting nation.