Space Disaster and Meteorite Alert!

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

Earlier books in this series dealt with hurricanes, blizzards,
earthquakes, volcanoes, wildfires, avalanches, tornadoes, heat waves,
floods, ocean storms, pandemics, and environmental disasters. These four
new titles continue the series’ highly successful format: short two-
or four-page chapters; numerous photos, diagrams, and other
illustrations; informative sidebars; and colourful titles and borders. A
table of contents, a glossary, and an index ensure ease of use.

Each book begins with a brief description of the disaster along with a
myth illustrating our long association and fascination with the
phenomenon. How and why the disaster occurs and what happens afterward
is discussed. The authors even speculate on what might happen should a
large meteorite fall to Earth. Many examples of famous disasters are
included. Young readers will be fascinated with accounts of such
transportation disasters as the Halifax Explosion of 1917, the sinking
of the Titanic in 1912, the exploding Hindenburg in 1937, and the
Russian submarine “Kursk” tragedy that occurred in 2002. The
devastation caused by the tsunami that hit Indonesia on December 26,
2004, will be well remembered and many will have read or heard of the
one that struck the island of Krakatoa in 1883. The Challenger and
Columbia spacecraft disasters will also be familiar. Terrorism has been
around since ancient times, and was even present in Canada in the 1970s,
when the FLQ went on a campaign of terror in Quebec.

Current methods of predicting and preventing disasters and the
continuing search for even better ways are described. For example, data
is collected from the “black boxes” of airplanes, the international
“ice patrol” tracks the movement of icebergs, scientists monitor
seismic activity, and counter-terrorist measures are continually being
expanded. Tips are given for avoiding danger and a useful checklist of
items to include in an emergency kit (e.g., flashlight, bottled water,
canned food, can opener, first-aid supplies, battery-powered radio, and
extra batteries) is provided.

The “Recipe for Disaster” sections in Tsunami Alert! and Space
Disaster and Meteorite Alert! are especially noteworthy, allowing
readers to recreate for themselves how a tsunami wave behaves and how a
crater may be formed from the impact of a meteorite.

Attractively designed, informative, and entertaining, these volumes are
sure to appeal to junior- and intermediate-grade students. The series is
highly recommended.