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Cathryn Conroy
Magical Writing! History Comes Alive, and You'll Feel as If You're in the Middle of the Hurricane
We humans have a fascination for the majestic, violent, and sometimes deadly power of Mother Nature. And while we take for granted 21st century meteorologists' ability to warn us of storms in our path, that wasn't always the case.
Isaac Monroe Cline was the head of the fledgling U.S. Weather Bureau in Galveston, Texas on September 8, 1900 when a category 4 hurricane slammed into the island, killing an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 people. The storm surge hit 15 feet on an island that was just nine feet above sea level. It is still considered the worst storm in history.
This historical account is riveting. Author Erik Larson alternates chapters titled "The Storm," which detail the formation and approach of the hurricane, with chapters that tell the backstories of the major players, as well as of a select group of Galveston's citizens young and old, the history of meteorological forecasting, and even the unfortunate ships caught in the path of the storm.
But this is more than a story about a formidable killer hurricane. It's also the story of an arrogant, self-serving federal bureaucracy that placed more value on its own good reputation than it did on saving lives and property. For example, weather forecasters were forbidden to use the word "hurricane" without approval from the head of the Weather Bureau in Washington, D.C. Why? The word was deemed too scary. If you don't acknowledge it, maybe it will go away. And while Isaac Cline eventually bucked his superiors and used the word "hurricane" to warn the residents of Galveston, by the time he did it, it was far too late.
Larson's writing is magical. He paints vivid, bright word pictures that make the sounds, sights, and even the odors of the hurricane and its aftermath pop off the page like a movie. I felt as if I were living the middle of the storm. His description of what it's like to be inside the eye of a hurricane is so intense and dramatic, it gave me the chills. And the depiction of the hurricane hitting and destroying Galveston has left me forever in awe of the destructive, violent power of such storms.
Bonus: You will learn lots of fun weather facts, such as how waves form, why a brick-red sky often precedes a hurricane, and how a storm surge forms.
