by Erik Larson
As I mentioned in a previous post, this year, for First Son's ninth grade science, I decided to use Sabbath Mood Homeschool's study guides. First Son is spending one term studying Chemistry, one term studying Physics, one term studying Weather, and a whole year studying Biology (but only the equivalent of a term as it's only once a week). The study guide for weather, like the others, contains a list of suggestions for independent reading during the term related to the science. Isaac's Storm was the book I selected for our term on Weather. I was able to request a copy from another member at PaperBackSwap.com.
(Side note: I seriously considered having First Son read Warnings, which I read many years ago, or another book on tornadoes, which would be appropriate for Kansas. Another good Kansas option might be The Worst Hard Time, which is a fantastic book, but I couldn't remember how much actual "weather" is described in it. In the end, I picked Isaac's Storm, partly because the reviews looked good enough that I wanted to read it and partly because I prefer to own our assigned books and this was the easiest one to get in hard copy. For First Daughter in a few years, I'll probably put them all on a list and let her choose one...and she'll probably read all of them.)
This book describes the hurricane that devastated Galveston, TX, in 1900. Told from the viewpoint, mostly, of Isaac Cline, the resident meteorologist, it also includes descriptions of the storm as it moves through space, escalating in strength. In 1900, there were no satellites to track hurricanes from space so the author relied on ships' logs and current knowledge of hurricanes. Moving over the open sea, it was completely hidden from everyone on shore until it struck with unprecedented force.
The author visited Galveston and spent hours poring over surviving photographs, augmenting the story with vivid descriptions of the bustling city before the storm. Besides Cline's experiences, interviews and written memoirs of a few others weave through the book, providing eyewitness accounts of the storm from different vantage points.
The Galveston hurricane was horrifyingly deadly. There are no pictures in the book (though some exist) but the descriptions of the death and destruction will be difficult for sensitive readers.
It's a masterful account and a compelling complement to our Weather study.
I received nothing in exchange for this post. This review contains my own opinions. Links above to Amazon and PaperBackSwap are affiliate links.
