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Binding: HardcoverDewey Decimal Number: 979.461051 Format: Bargain Price Label: HarperCollins Manufacturer: HarperCollins Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 480 Publication Date: October 01, 2005 Publisher: HarperCollins Release Date: October 04, 2005 Studio: HarperCollins Editorial Review: Amazon.com Review: Geologically speaking, 1906 was a violent year: powerful, destructive earthquakes shook the ground from Taiwan to South America, while in Italy, Mount Vesuvius erupted. And in San Francisco, a large earthquake occurred just after five in the morning on April 18--and that was just the beginning. The quake caused a conflagration that raged for the next three days, destroying much of the American West's greatest city. The fire, along with water damage and other indirect acts, proved more destructive than the earthquake itself, but insurance companies tried hard to dispute this fact since few people carried earthquake insurance. It was also the world's first major natural disaster to have been extensively photographed and covered by the media, and as a result, it left "an indelible imprint on the mind of the entire nation." Though the epicenter of this marvelously constructed book is San Francisco, Winchester covers much more than just the disaster. He discusses how this particular quake led to greater scientific study of quakes in an attempt to understand the movements of the earth. Trained at Oxford University as a geologist, Winchester is well qualified to discuss the subject, and he clearly explains plate tectonics theory (first introduced in 1968) and the creation of the San Andreas Fault, along with the geologic exploration of the American West in the late 19th century and the evolution of technology used to measure and predict earthquakes. He also covers the social and political shifts caused by the disaster, such as the way that Pentecostalists viewed the quake as "a message of divine approval" and used it to recruit new members into the church, and the rise in the local Chinese population. With many records destroyed in the fire, there was no way to distinguish between legal and illegal immigrants, and thus many more Chinese were granted citizenship than would have otherwise been. Filled with eyewitness accounts, vivid descriptions, crisp prose, and many delightful meanderings, A Crack in the Edge of the World is a thoroughly absorbing tale. --Shawn Carkonen Product Description: Unleashed by ancient geologic forces, a magnitude 8.25 earthquake rocked San Francisco in the early hours of April 18, 1906. Less than a minute later, the city lay in ruins. Bestselling author Simon Winchester brings his inimitable storytelling abilities to this extraordinary event, exploring the legendary earthquake and fires that spread horror across San Francisco and northern California in 1906 as well as its startling impact on American history and, just as important, what science has recently revealed about the fascinating subterranean processes that produced it—and almost certainly will cause it to strike again. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Literature trumps historyLiterature trumps history Simon Winchester writes with an admiral skill. His presentation of the geology and the contemporary reports of the San Francisco earthquake are intriguing, sometimes riveting. But his historical generalization are often far fetched or just simply inaccurate. Because I listened to the book on tape I did not make a list of all the times I gritted my teeth because of an overstatement. It began with odd comments on the history of science which mentioned something ... Read More Rating: - Bogged down by detailsThis book is thoroughly researched and keeps as its primary focus a fascinating subject: the earthquake that leveled San Francisco in 1906. However, it may almost be TOO researched, as it shoots off on endless tangents about the process of seismography and the tectonic mechanics of earthquakes themselves. While this formula worked for the author's previous books, this one is bogged down by the tangential stuff and not enough focus is placed on the central subject - keeping the reader from really engaging ... Read More Rating:  - Informative and enjoyableThis book is like Krakatoa in that Simon Winchester paints a picture of the era as well as the event, so that we can understand its context. This is very helpful since it is easy to assume our cultural context has always been. The author has an enjoyably detailed writing style, and builds successfully to the event and aftermath. Lots of science and lots of personal stories. Well worth reading. Rating: - Eclectic excursion through history and scienceThis is four intertwined topics in one book, which means that you get either a highly informative amalgamation or a confusing muddle, depending on your personal taste. I'm inclined toward the former assessment, although I preferred Winchester's writing in his earlier book on Krakatoa. - The main story, of course, is the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. But other than a brief scene-setter at the beginning of the book, the earthquake doesn't burst into the narrative until Chapter 10 (p. 243). - Another ... Read More Rating: - Fault-line roulette stops on San Francisco, 1906Winchester is a very good popularizer of science, and he writes a meandering account of the San Francisco earthquake that covers the globe from Norway to Alaska in telling the story. His account of the underground geology of the western states is fascinating, lending plausibility to the thought that, if not about to slide into the Pacific Ocean, California is at least sitting on top of a fast-moving (as tectonic plates go) fault-line merry-go-round about to spin it into some form of disaster. Read More |
