The Big Truck That Went By

I enjoyed reading The Big Truck That Went By by Jonathan Katz. In the beginning Katz touches on the earthquake of 2010 that devastated Haiti. He continues to explain the devastation in Haiti by explaining the collapse of the school building a couple years before the tornado. It really blows my mind that 100 schoolchildren were killed in the collapse caused by poor construction in an effort to save money. I am truly shocked that 100 children were just simply casualties in a much bigger problem.
   It is really interesting reading the events of the earthquake from Katz's point of view. He mentions in the book that outside the earthquake, there was extreme chaos that was expected to be mutual in Haiti. However, Katz explains that there was no sign of panic during the earthquake and people were just trying to move on with their lives.
   The corruption in Haiti was and still is ridiculous. Katz says that shortly after the earthquake, he and Sanon traveled to a different town closer to the center of the earthquake. As they approached the city limits, there were men making weapons in order to defend themselves and property against the looters that decided to take advantage of the earthquake. It was difficult for outsiders to help with the relief effort in Haiti. Katz mentioned that language was a huge barrier that prevented progress in outside help effort. He also acknowledges that outsiders are operating with limited local, language, and cultural comprehension which makes it difficult to cope with such a drastic change. This is directly related back to the first book that we read, Silencing the Past. It is very important to Haiti's history that this story be told. Katz does a great job of detailing his unique experiences and providing his opinions and beliefs about certain sensitive topics.
   I was only 12 years old when this earthquake devastated Haiti. I was old enough to remember the earthquake and relief efforts. My school even had several fund raising events in order to raise money for the relief effort. However, I was too young to really understand the extent of the destruction and how the earthquake simply just added to the corruption and devastation that already existed in Haiti. 
   Katz has provided a completely new insight into Haiti. His personal account is compassionate and provokes many opinions and thoughts on topics that I have never even thought about or considered. (Most of the government stuff is over my head, but it doesn't take a genius to realize how corrupt Haiti is and the serious struggles they are facing).