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| SYNOPSIS:
Immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling set you right in the middle of the horrific superstorm of April 2011, a weather event that killed 348 people.
April 27, 2011, marked the climax of a superstorm that saw a record 358 tornadoes rip through twenty-one states in three days, seven hours, and eighteen minutes. It was the deadliest day of the biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history, which saw 348 people killed, entire neighborhoods erased, and $11 billion in damage. The biggest of the tornadoes left scars across the land so wide they could be seen from space. But from the terrible destruction emerged everyday heroes, neighbors and strangers who rescued each other from hell on earth. With powerful emotion and gripping detail, Cross weaves together the heart-wrenching stories of several characters—including three college students, a celebrity weatherman, and a team of hard-hit rescuers—to create a nail-biting chronicle in the Tornado Alley of America. No, it’s not Oklahoma or Kansas; it’s Alabama, where there are more tornado fatalities than anywhere in the US, where the trees and hills obscure the storms until they’re bearing down upon you. For some, it’s a story of survival, and for others it’s the story of their last hours. Cross’s immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling sets you right in the middle of the very worst hit areas of Alabama, where thousands of ordinary people witnessed the sky falling around them. Yet from the disaster comes a redemptive message that’s just as real: In times of trouble, the things that tear our world apart also reveal what holds us together
REVIEW:
This powerful book grabs you into its pages and like the tornados, it spirals your emotions on a wild ride. It is a true story of the grisly damage done by the 62 tornados that took place in Alabama on April 27, 2011. Nevertheless, the author does not just focus on the horror of the situation, providing also the courage, strength, community's uniting, and the strength to move on after this catastrophe. I found not one bad thing about the writing of this book. It is written in three different sections: the storm, aftermath, and recovery making the story come together exceedingly well.
I learned an immense amount of information about weather and meteorology such as all the history behind it including the accidental discovery of radar, how the tornado sirens came to be, the first airplanes P-61C's to fly into tornados taking the first measurements of them, in conclusion, the remarkable groundwork accomplished to get science where it is today. The book will have you shedding tears as you go along on the journeys of people losing loved ones. The turmoil of losing everything a person had plus the place where they once felt safe had called home. Henceforth, you will be smiling with joy when you read about people helping others they do not know. Also, when a ghastly event proves that compassion still lives inside us all even towards a rival. This book just blew me away (no pun intended). Thank you, Kim Cross for taking me on this adventure. |
"Thanks Netgalley for letting me give an honest opinion of this book"
LINKS:
What Stands In A Storm is available wherever books are sold.
Pick up a copy today!
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Kim Cross is a contributing editor for Southern Living and a feature writer who has received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Society of American Travel Writers, and the Media Industry Newsletter. Her writing has appeared in Outside, Parade, Popular Mechanics, Cooking Light, Bicycling, Runner’s World, The Tampa Bay Times, The Birmingham News, The Anniston Star, USA TODAY, The New Orleans Times-Picayune, and on SBNation.com, ESPN.com, and CNN.com. She lives in Alabama. |
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