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Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 (P.S.)

It may seem a stretch to connect a volcanic eruption with civil and religious unrest in Indonesia today, but Simon Winchester makes a compelling case. Krakatoa tells the frightening tale of the biggest volcanic eruption in history using a blend of gentle geology and narrative history. Krakatoa erupted at a time when technologies like the telegraph were becoming commonplace and Asian trade routes were being expanded by northern European companies. This bustling colonial backdrop provides an effective canvas for the suspense leading up to August 27th, 1883, when the nearby island of Krakatoa would violently vaporize. Winchester describes the eruption through the eyes of its survivors, and readers will be as horrified and mesmerized as eyewitnesses were as the death toll reached nearly 40,000 (almost all of whom died from tsunamis generated by the unimaginably strong shock waves of the eruption). Ships were thrown miles inshore, endless rains of hot ash engulfed those towns not drowned by 100 foot waves, and vast rafts of pumice clogged the hot sea. The explosion was heard thousands of miles away, and the eruption's shock wave traveled around the world seven times. But the book's biggest surprise is not the riveting catalog of the volcano's effects; rather, it is Winchester's contention that the Dutch abandonment of their Indonesian colonies after the disaster left local survivors to seek comfort in radical Islam, setting the stage for a volatile future for the region. --Therese Littleton

Simon Winchester, New York Times bestselling author of The Professor and the Madman, examines the legendary annihilation in 1883 of the volcano-island of Krakatoa, which was followed by an immense tsunami that killed nearly forty thousand people. The effects of the immense waves were felt as far away as France. Barometers in Bogot? and Washington, D.C., went haywire. Bodies were washed up in Zanzibar. The sound of the island's destruction was heard in Australia and India and on islands thousands of miles away. Most significant of all -- in view of today's new political climate -- the eruption helped to trigger in Java a wave of murderous anti-Western militancy among fundamentalist Muslims, one of the first outbreaks of Islamic-inspired killings anywhere. Krakatoa gives us an entirely new perspective on this fascinating and iconic event.

This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

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Smarter Choice Paperback, Krakatoa: The Day The... Now in paperback comes the New York Times bestseller on the catastrophic eruption of the volcano Krakatoa in 1883,...	23,982 reviews *smarter certified	$7.62 Coupon 1 coupon available Code: Detail: Take $5 OFF the purchase of $100 or more at Buy.com Expires:Nov-30-2009 Restriction:New Customers Only. Coupons are not valid on Marketplace items	See it
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ProductReviews77/100 (100 Reviews)

Recent Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-16-2009; Fantastic reading !; This is my seccond book from Simon Winchester ( the other was The map that changed the World) .Winchester is a great writer giving you a broad and at the same time concise perspective of the subject he covers.In this case one wonders how...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Aug-10-2009; Krakatoa: Background & Digression; Well, I wish I had a better review to offer. As a professional geologist, I found the book wanting, but it is hard to articulate why. I expected, perhaps, more detail about the geology of the area, the eruption, the horrendus...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Aug-07-2009; Subject to change without notice; Those who know Simon Winchester's work will know what to expect from him in a book about a volcanic eruption. Not for Winchester is the straight shot to lava and ash; first we must explore the history and geography of the area where this...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Jul-10-2009; Good history of the science and culture of the big volcano; Simon Winchester has a talent for making a single event at the same time intimate and all encompassing, while imparting a good deal of scientific knowledge at the same time. In Krakatoa, he includes detailed history of the science behind...; read full review | report as inappropriate

Selected Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-16-2009; Fantastic reading !; This is my seccond book from Simon Winchester ( the other was The map that changed the World) .Winchester is a great writer giving you a broad and at the same time concise perspective of the subject he covers.In this case one wonders how...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Aug-10-2009; Krakatoa: Background & Digression; Well, I wish I had a better review to offer. As a professional geologist, I found the book wanting, but it is hard to articulate why. I expected, perhaps, more detail about the geology of the area, the eruption, the horrendus...; read full review | report as inappropriate

2/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Jun-26-2009; Krakatoa; This book is quite slow which lost me. I feel it focused far too much on island horticulture and populace. I purchased the book specifically for the eruption and post-eruption affects, and because I didn't receive that information early...; read full review | report as inappropriate

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