Disaster!

A History of Earthquakes, Floods, Plagues, and Other Catastrophes

By: John Withington

Narrated by: Roger Clark

A comprehensive catalog of the most devastating and deadly events-natural or man-made-in human history.

If you follow the news it can seem like injury, sickness, and death are now constant, inescapable occurrences that threaten us every second of every day. But such catastrophic events - as terrible and frightening as they are - have been happening for as long as mankind has walked the Earth.... and even before.

From ancient volcanoes and floods to epidemics of cholera and smallpox to Hitler's and Stalin's mass killings in the 20th century, humanity's continued existence has always seemed perilous. This volume offers a unique perspective on our modern fears by revealing how dangerous our world has always been-with examples such as:

• The Black Death that killed over 75 million people in the 1300s
• The 1883 volcanic eruption on Krakatoa
• The Irish Potato Famine
• The 1970 cyclone in Bangladesh
• And the long-ago volcano in Sumatra that may have wiped out as much as 99 percent of the world population.

With this catalog of calamity, listeners will be engrossed, enlightened, and relieved to realize that despite all the disasters that have befallen humanity, we are still here.

©2008 John Withington (P)2018 Tantor

Love this stuff

As a decision scientist, I'm fascinated by the many ways that seemingly smart people can screw things up or be blind to unforeseen consequences. This book is filled with unlimited examples.

Ironically, this book cheers me up. If I think I'm having a bad day, I listen to this book. My bad days don't even compare to what people experienced based on these stories!

The black death

I liked pretty much everything in the book. It was really good and had a good story line.

Good listen

Great and informative book. Thank you. With all of the tragic things that have happened, it’s a wonder that there are still people on the planet

Fantastic account of disasters!

I work in emergency management so I have an admittedly creepy interest in disasters. This book was amazing. I had to buy the print version after listening to the audiobook so I can reference it in classes I’m teaching. And I’m always a fanboy for Roger Clark’s narrations!

Several disasters were not mentioned, such as the Lockerbie disaster, the USS Cole bombing, or the USS Indianapolis.

The narrator sounded rather monotonous, and I had difficulty staying focused on the story. While I realize that the narrator may be AI, I found it very difficult to listen and stay engaged.