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Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | J 363.3493 LAU | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
The celebrated author of Volcano: The Eruption and Healing of Mt. St. Helens (winner of the 1987 Newbery Honor Book Award) reveals in gripping color photos and lively, informative text, the fierce strength of the mighty Mississippi River. Most dramatically, Lauber details the devastating floods of 1927 and 1993. Over 60 color photos.
Author Notes
Patricia Lauber was born in New York City and graduated from Wellesley College. During her lifetime, she wrote more than 125 children's books including the Around-the-House History series, the Clarence the TV Dog series, and contributions to the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series. Volcano: Eruption and Healing of Mount St. Helens received a Newbery Honor in 1986. In 1983, she received The Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for her overall contribution to children's nonfiction literature. Besides being an author, she was also an editor of Junior Scholastic and editor-in-chief of Science World. She died on March 12, 2010 at the age of 86.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
Horn Book Review
Illustrated with color photographs and maps, the text surveys the natural and social history of the river and people's attempts to control its route and prevent flooding. The book focuses on the floods of 1993 and the decision to return some of the floodplain back to the Mississippi rather than rebuild levees. Cogently written, 'Flood' makes it clear that humans can affect but never fully control the mighty river. Ind. From HORN BOOK 1996, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A splendid narrative, subtitled ``Wrestling with the Mississippi,'' about a mighty river, from its formation, efforts to channel and change it, floods and other disasters, and future plans. Lauber (Hurricanes, p. 1051, etc.) tells everything through text and a selection of striking full-color photographs and maps; she recounts the floods of the 1880s, 1932, and 1993, in which 464 miles of river flooded, covering over 15 million acres of farmland and driving more than 36,000 people from their homes. Rarely has a disaster been presented in such serenely beautiful photographs. From the front jacket showing a light-colored house and red barns, window-deep in dark blue water to the penultimate scene of a great egret rising against the sun, the photographs are jewel-bright, set amidst the readable text. An engrossing look at a great river and the continuing challenge of technology and science in support of the natural environment and all its inhabitants. (photos, maps, diagrams, reproductions, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Booklist Review
Gr. 5^-8. The subject is less catastrophic than in Lauber's Hurricanes (BKL O 1 96), but this photo-essay has the same compelling blend of science and daily news. This time there's a lot more about geology and also about engineering. The special focus on one great flood of one great river in 1993 roots the technology in the particulars of places and people. As in Lauber's Newbery Honor Book, Volcano (1986), the account of the natural disaster is followed by details of community support and repair. The design is handsome and accessible, with clear maps and diagrams and a profusion of handsome full-color photos that range from surreal views of farms under water to close-ups of families trying to salvage their possessions. Lauber points out the inevitable conflict: it is the nature of the river to flood and spread out, and it is the nature of people to try to keep it off the land where they live and work. --Hazel Rochman
