John Withington

A wide-ranging and enjoyable (if that's the word to use when reading a book about human suffering) book on the major disasters that have affected humans. In a broad sweep of history, we read of the volcanic eruption 100,000 years ago that almost wiped out humans (the volcano in question is now Lake Toba in Indonesia; a very pleasant place that I visited more recently than 100,000BCE), the various plagues, pestilences, wars and general evil that men do.

While we're at it, we get first hand accounts of Pliny the Elder's death at Vesuvius and more ways to describe mass deaths than I thought possible. Some are actually quite poetic.

As you read these and think of the past, with its tsunamis, fires and genocides, you realise that if you've learned anything in this life, is that it is only a matter of time before the next massive earthquake, plane crash and man man comes along and this book will have to be updated.… (meer)

This book represents a compelling account of all sorts of disasters - volcanoes, earthquakes, storms, shipwrecks, and what I would call "evil-dictator-death", among many other categories. Among the many accounts are some truly fascinating stories. Who knew that the human race was nearly wiped out 74,000 years ago by a mammoth volcano eruption? How often do 60-foot waves demolish a lighthouse in England?

The early chapters deal with natural disasters, which are fascinating, but generally not too disturbing. As you move into the book, though, this changes, with accounts of massive plagues and purges caused by demagogues. These chapters are morbidly fascinating and bring us more into contact with the dark side of human nature, as well as presenting body counts that are truly astounding in many cases.

Overall, the book is fascinating for anyone at all interested in this sort of thing. However, it can get a bit repetitive at times if you're reading it cover-to-cover. My advice would be to either read it in segments, putting it away and coming back to it when you feel the urge, or to pick and choose the kinds of events that you're most interested in. This repetitiveness is the reason that I didn't give it 5 stars. The research behind the book and the writing style are both of high quality. In short, a worthy purchase for anyone with an interest in learning about the worst disasters to afflict human history.… (meer)