Cherie Burns

The book was OK, covering an event which was unfamiliar to me, and I believe is generally unfamiliar to most. The author tells the story through the recollections of a number of survivors, but the book wasn't as dramatic as I guessed it might have been. It read more like a series of newspaper accounts, factual, interesting, but the danger the survivors must have felt didn't always come across. Interesting to me, living in the 21st century, was the description of the lack of accurate weather forecasting at the time.… (altro)

This reviewer is one of those people who appreciate first person accounts of almost any nature. In The Great Hurricane: 1938 the author traces the timeline of the approach, impact and aftermath of the storm from the standpoint of first person descriptions of what happened in various locations along the New England coast during each of the phases of the storm.

Some of the accounts, by virtue of necessity, lapse into speculation as to what might have happened because the actual record of what transpired is veiled by an individual’s death during the storm. As might be expected with a disaster of this magnitude the range of personal experiences runs the gamut from humor to horror. The book is well written and the word pictures hold the readers interest. My only complaint is that I wish the author had included a few more maps to indicate where the various people in the book were located at the time of the event they were describing took place.

If you are looking for a book that is long on technical details and cross referenced with respect to the various aspects of the physical facts of the New England hurricane of 1938 this is not a book you would want to read. On the other hand, if you have an interest the details, at the individual level, surrounding the advent, survival, and aftermath of a natural disaster then this book is one you should consider.… (altro)

It is difficult to recreate a tragedy when the participants have all died, after all it was nearly 80 years ago. But the author does an admirable job of it. The descriptions reminded me of reading Isaac's Storm. However there were differences. New England was coming out of the Great Depression and many had not yet recovered when the storm hit. In addition to the lack of warning from the weather service, the infant phone and electrical services were completely wiped out in the initial hour. But most telling were the headlines informing readers about Hitler marching into Czechoslovakia. That overtook the news of any weather.
I was disappointed by the sparsity of resources but I was able to find newspaper reports in my online library database. I am sorry there weren't more photos of the survivors who were mentioned in the stories. All in all a good read.… (altro)