About this title: Winchester, author of THE MAP THAT CHANGED THE WORLD, here revisits the volcanic explosion at Krakatoa that shook the world. The story of this cataclysmic event covers most of the earth, as Winchester offers anecdotes from all those affected by the eruption, from Indonesia to New York. A New York Times Notable Book for 2003.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! read more
Description: Good. Ships from the UK. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Your purchase also supports literacy charities. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Good. Our aim is to create value for our customers through the provision of low cost, affordable products and an overall satisfying buying experience. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Good. PAGES TANNED-TEAR TO DUST JACKET-GOOD OVERALL CONDITION-TRUSTED DEVON (UK) BASED SELLER-IN STOCK-SENT WITHIN 1 WORKING DAY-AVAILABLE BY EMAIL FOR QUERIES-NO QUIBBLE REFUND IF NOT COMPLETELY SATISFIED- read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Good. This book is in GOOD overall condition. It shows signs of having been read and has general light wear to the cover, spine and pages. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Fine. Next day dispatch by Royal Mail. International delivery available. 1000's of satisfied customers! Please contact us with any queries. Next working day dispatch from the UK. Please contact us with any queries. read more
Binding: Softcovers
Publisher: Penguin Viking
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670914289ISBN:0670914282
Description: Very Good. No Jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. Slightly larger than average paperback 432 pages. Page block edges a little darkened, mark on top page block edge otherwise in very good read once condition. On 27 August 1883 the most terrifying volcanic eruption destroyed the Island of Krakatoa and killed almost 40, 000 people. The impact was truly global and their would be even more far-reaching effects-the event became the catalyst to a dramatic and bloody uprising of the regions Muslim community ... read more
Description: Good. No dust jacket as issued. Good reading copy. Tight binding. Ready for immediate delivery! Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 448 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. In this first US edition, the author of the The Map That Changed the World portrays the 19th-century eruption of a Javanese volcano that still has global repercussions in both historical and scientific contexts. The book includes maps and other illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Chivers Large print (Chivers, Wi
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780754019640ISBN:0754019640
Description: Acceptable. Ex library with stampings to end papers and small catalogue number to spine. Available for immediate dispatch from UK. Edge wear to covers. Dispatched from UK. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Penguin
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Published by Penguin in 2004. Binding: Paperback. Number of pages: 448. Condition: Like NEW. No defects, may have been previously read. Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: VIKING
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Ex-Library Published by Viking in 2003. Hardcover. Number of pages: 448. Ex. Library copy-usual stamps and marks. Condition: Good. Used book but in Good Condition for sensible price. #8315204 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: VIKING
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Published by Viking in 2003. Hardcover. Number of pages: 448. Condition: Very Good. May show some slight signs of wear. #8377211 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: VIKING
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Ex-Library Published by Viking in 2003. Binding: Hardback with Dust jacket. Number of pages: 448. Ex. Library copy-usual stamps and marks. Condition: Good. Used book but in Good Condition for sensible price. #8488677 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: VIKING
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Ex-Library Published by Viking in 2003. Hardcover. Number of pages: 448. Ex. Library copy-usual stamps and marks. Condition: Good. Used book but in Good Condition for sensible price. #8313923 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: PENGUIN BOOKS LTD
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780141005171ISBN:0141005173
Description: Published by Penguin Books Ltd in 2004. Binding: Paperback. Number of pages: 448. Condition: Very Good. May show some slight signs of wear. #8500534 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: VIKING
Date Published: 2003
ISBN-13:9780670911264ISBN:0670911267
Description: Ex-Library Published by Viking in 2003. Hardcover. Number of pages: 448. Ex. Library copy-usual stamps and marks. Condition: Good. Used book but in Good Condition for sensible price. #8340814 Shipped from UK. Delivery is usually 2-3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail. read more
"I genuinely like Simon Winchester's writing. I don't think this book was as strong as his books on the OED, despite (or maybe because of) the fact that he was a geologist in another lifetime. The chapters on the history of geology, vulcanology and plate tectonics were incredibly interesting, but overall pretty dry. While necessary to the understanding of what occurred on Krakatoa in 1883, this section perhaps didn't need to be so LONG; it seemed that I had to read half the book before I got to the event itself. And maybe I am not smart enough to understand subduction zones and the like in the abstract, but I could have used more well-labelled diagrams; maybe I need a geology textbook. On the other hand, the firsthand accounts of the eruption(s) and the discussion of its after-effects, both physical and sociological, were fascinating."
"You could almost think of this as a textbook, chock full of an amazing amount of information, except for the very entertaining way in which it was written. I have to admit that my eyes glazed over at times and I'm not sure I absorbed it all, but I absorbed enough to learn a ton. I learned about plate tectonics, Dutch colonial history, botany, the formation of tsunamis, Indonesia, radical Islamism, and so much more. (Don't ask me to remember this a year from now though.) At times, when Winchester went off on a tangent, I thought, How can this possibly be relevant?" But it always was. The details made up an incredibly big picture. Winchester has a penchant for melodramatic statements (some of the chapters are named "The Unchaining of the Gates of Hell" and "The Paroxysm, the Flood, and the Crack of Doom") but I chalk this up to his overwhelming enthusiasm for his topic. The only one of his claims that seemed shaky and not very well substantiated is that the radical Islamic fanaticism that permeates Indonesia today can be traced back to Krakatoa and its aftermath. I would have liked the author to delve into that hypothesis more thoroughly. At the end when Winchester makes a trip out to the "Son of Krakatoa" and hikes up to the edge of the crater, I felt the story had come full circle (which it really hadn't--Krakatoa will erupt again). I can't wait to revisit the children's book The 21 Balloons in which Krakatoa has a starring role!"
"The most interesting thing that I learn from this book is about how recent the science of plate tectonics is. Most of the major theories relating to it were only established in the 1960's. There is an astounding 100-year gap between it and the much more controversial theory of evolution. The history of the development of the theory of plate tectonics is fascinating, although some of the scientific/ technical details could be rather tedious to read for someone who is not of a scientific bent like me.
Only two chapters are entirely devoted to the actual explosion and its aftermath, the rest being filled with various discussions about the development of plate tectonics theory, the colonial history of Indonesia, Alfred Russell Wallace and his contribution to the theory of evolution, the spread of 'radical' Islam, and even the author's reminiscence of his days as a geology student at Oxford. Some of these are supportive of the main topic, while others, like the bits about Wallace and Oxford, are interesting in their own rights, but perhaps only tangentially related to the main subject.
The author seems to argue for a connection between the massive 1883 explosion and its catasthropic aftermath with the rise of anti-Dutch rebellions inspired by 'radical' Islam in Indonesia, a connection which I find to be tenuous at best. There is no doubt that the explosion caused massive hardship among the native population, but they had been suffering under the forced cultivation system instituted by the colonial regime for a half-century before that. Armed resistance against the Dutch, some of them inspired by Islam, had been occuring all over the archipelago long before the first rumblings of Krakatoa."
"This is a very interesting recounting of what may have been the world's most dramatic volcanic explosion. Krakatoa (more properly 'Krakatau' if you are from Southeast Asia - an Indonesian will laugh at you if you pronounce it 'Krakatoa'), a volcanic island on the Strait of Sunda in Indonesia erupted on August 27, 1883, after years of rumbling. The explosion and associated tsunami killed over 40,000 people and the ash from the volcano plunged the region into darkness for months. Bodies washed up as far as Zanzibar and the explosion was detected as far away as Washington, D.C. This book contains a wealth of interesting information on Indonesian religions and culture, Dutch colonialization, and geology. It is a dense book and not a quick read but one can learn a lot from it."
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