Hope Blooms in This Lyrical Novel About the Power of Community

No one wants to feel powerless—especially not Lily, a Filipina and Puerto Rican 11-year-old living in Central Florida.

When Lily witnesses something extraordinary at the start of summer break, she faces a choice: keep her secret buried or trust her loving community with the mystery unfolding in her heart.

Through poetry that spans cultures and continents, Lily learns that grief isn't a weakness to hide but a sacred mystery ready to bloom when nurtured by a safe, loving community (bayanihan) that holds us up when the storms of life try to push us down.

What middle-grade readers will find in If Hurricanes Were Flowers:



- Magical realism woven together with a thread of faith that shows readers how God redeems brokenness and brings hope to those who need it most

- A celebration of diversity, identity, and belonging told through Asian American and Afro Latino characters and experiences

- An interactive experience with "Lily's Little Guide to Poetry," an appendix that turns readers into writers

- Novel-in-verse format that makes reading more accessible through shorter, engaging text

- Fifteen beautiful illustrations that bring Lily's world to life

Children's author and spoken-word artist Quina Aragon's debut novel in verse is a thrilling and bold story that offers readers ages 8–12 hope, healing, and the reminder that no one has to figure out life's hardest parts alone. With If Hurricanes Were Flowers, readers will see that even the fiercest storms can nurture the most beautiful flowers.



Quina Aragon is an author, speaker, and spoken-word artist. She has written three children's books—Love Made, Love Gave, and Love Can—and a book for adults, Love Has a Story. Born in Manila and raised in Orlando, Quina is of Filipina, Puerto Rican, and Jamaican descent. As a first-generation child of immigrants, she has navigated layered identities, finding refuge in the warmth of her extended family. Her writing explores identity, migration, and the way our personal and cultural stories echo Scripture's grand narrative. Today Quina lives in Orlando with her husband, Jon, and their daughter, Jael.



A Note to the Reader

Part 1: If



1. "Where You From?!"



2. Where I'm From



3. My mother's motherland, my father's fatherland



4. Ni de aquí, ni de allá



5. "Don't give her any trouble"



6. Lola Rosita's



7. Lola's Garden



8. Questions



9. Lola's "Answers"



10. The. . .thing



11. Something's Fishy



12. A Sign?



13. Simple but Not Easy

Part 2: Hurricanes



14. Double Digits (The Best Part)



15. Double Digits (The Worst Part)



16. "In the wink of an eye"



17. When I've seen what I've seen



18. You Know What



19. In the Dark Garden



20. What I'm Gonna Do



21. Pedal and Sweat



22. Ojalá



23. Hurricane Hunters



24. "Remember our talk, OK?"



25. High-Five the Sky



26. The Waiting Game



27. Incorrect Password



28. How to Figure Stuff Out on Your Own



29. Papi's Google



30. Remember the Rest



31. Get to Work

Part 3: Were



32. What Summer Normally Meant



33. Changes



34. Summer, Summer, Summertime!



35. Hurricane Prep



36. I'll Be Ready



37. For the Trash (or) the Plant Pot?



38. Noah Knows EVERYTHING



39. The Face of a Friend



40. Noah Knows Nothing



41. Fix Me



42. The Surprise



43. Me and Mo



44. Favorite Cousin Stuff



45. If I Fail



46. "We're ALL gonna go!"



47. The Boogie Board Queen



48. Regret



49. About as Tall as. . .



50. Lily



51. "Bye, I guess"



52. Mo's Note

Part 4: Flowers



53. Nails



54. An Amador



55. How Mom Met Papi



56. How Papi Met Mom



57. Hurricane Maria



58. I Blackout After Hurricane Maria



59. The School's Counselor Office



60. Church



61. Flags



62. "It's complicated"



63. EVERY CLOUD HAS A SILVER LIGHTNING



64. Brain Storm



65. Super Typhoon



66. I Remember



67. Breathe



68. If Papi were in the room, I'd say



69. If Papi were in the room, he'd say

Part 5: They'd Be



70. Things Papi Used to Call Me



71. Sublime



72.Wish It Were a Sonnet



73. "I need to tell you something"



74. The Bayanihan Painting



75. "Are you ready to hear my story?"



76. 9,000 Miles Away



77. Lola's First Garden



78. "The real question is why?"



79. We Plant Gardens



80. Like Writing Limericks

Part 6: A Little



81. Untitled



82. Rip Current



83. Safe in the Waves



84. Eye (I) of the Hurricane



85. Sinking



86. "Right where you are"



87. To Our Garden



88. "Do you know what flower that is?!"



89. Red Like Love's Bond



90. Hurricane Lillies



91. "What should we name it?"

Part 7: Like . . .



92. If Hurricanes Were Flowers



93. Three Sturdy Palm Trees



94. The Little Things



95. MCO to SJU



96. NOT a LITTLE Surprise



97. Time to Unpack



98. Taking Off



99. Sí de aquí, sí de allá



100. "Here we'll stay"



Appendix 1: Lily's Little Guide to Poetry



Appendix 2: Where to Reach Out



Acknowledgments