The Prentice-Hall Concise Book of the Weather

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

It’s incredibly difficult for an author to present scientific, technical information in layman’s language without over-simplifying. Wright achieves this admirably. The text is smooth and highly readable, yet there’s no scrimping on facts or avoidance of the technical terminology of meteorology.

The text looks at the weather in global terms: not only what caused today’s shower but what are the trends and patterns, what we know of the weather from a historical perspective, and what the future will bring. An interesting section deals with the present and future science of forecasting, including the use of satellites and the role of the computer and modern technology in a practice that was once considered 98 percent luck.

The causes of hurricanes, tornadoes, thunder and lightning, floods, blizzards, ice storms and other weather spectaculars are reviewed. Jet streams, fog, hail, and even sunshine are explained, making the work invaluable for students and small-craft navigators.

Numerous diagrams, illustrations, and spectacular photographs, most in colon, contribute greatly to the work. Excellent full-color diagrams clarify the interactions of the various components in a given weather situation, helping the reader grasp fairly complex information with ease.