[This is a review I wrote in 2009]

** Four devastating natural disasters narrated largely from eye-witness accounts**

A narration of four events that changed the world, all natural disasters. Each disaster chosen corresponds to one of the four natural elements - earth, air, fire, water - showing how volatile each of these elements can be. Richard Hamblyn has chosen the Lisbon earthquake of 1755, the European Air Panic of 1783 (the unusual weather phenomena and strange appearance of the skies), the Krakatoa volcanic eruption of 1883, and the Hilo Tsunami of 1946. His preface about the most devastating Tsunami in recorded history, the Boxing Day disaster in 2004 is a stark reminder of our vulnerability to natural disasters at any time and how important it is that we as humans learn from what our planet is telling us and learn from any past mistakes in dealing with these catastrophic events.

Part history, part history of science and geology, reading Richard Hamblyn's narration is a humbling experience. Each case history is drawn primarily from eye-witness accounts which lends a very human perspective to these natural disasters and enhances the reminder that any one of these events could take place again. A very readable and thought-provoking thesis. ( )

I was interested to read about these four events, Krakatau being the only one I was familiar with. My favourite section was the one about the Hilo tsunami, with a thought-provoking commentary on "disaster amnesia" and the importance of public awareness. One of my favourite lines in the book was "in spite of the expensive equipment available, one should never underestimate the lifesaving potential of someone running away from the shoreline shouting, 'Tsunami!'".

The descriptions of all the disasters were focused on eyewitness accounts. It was interesting to learn what the people who were there thought at the time, but two dozen accounts of the fog over Europe in 1783 tend to get rather repetitive. And the narrative connecting the accounts was not exactly riveting.

I learned quite a bit from this book, and enjoyed it enough to persist to the end. Unfortunately, I also found that I kept dozing off. ( )

I really enjoyed this exploration of how natural disasters affect the people that face them, and indeed change the course of history. I have read books about Krakatoa and the Hilo tsunami before, but the other two disasters were completely new to me. Hamblyn is an excellent historian, and his focus on the human side of these disasters is far more telling than statistics about the amount of lava squirted. When you read it, you feel a kinship with the unfortunate people who must face these catastrophes - the have no choice or other options. But perhaps even more important is his description of how these disasters altered the course of history. Further proof that we are but passengers on this enormous and powerful planet. ( )