The Storm of the Century

Tragedy, Heroism, Survival, and the Epic True Story of America's Deadliest Natural Disaster: The Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900

By: Al Roker, William Hogeland

Narrated by: Byron Wagner

In this gripping narrative history, the beloved NBC weather personality vividly brings to life the Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900: the deadliest natural disaster in American history.

On the afternoon of September 8, 1900, 200-mile-per-hour winds and 15-foot waves slammed into Galveston, the prosperous and growing port city on Texas' Gulf Coast. By dawn the next day, when the storm had passed, the city that had existed just hours before was gone. Shattered, grief-stricken survivors emerged to witness a level of destruction never before seen: 8,000 corpses littered the streets and were buried under the massive wreckage. Rushing water had lifted buildings from their foundations, smashing them into pieces, while intense winds had upended girders and trestles, driving them through house walls and into sidewalks. In less than 24 hours, one storm destroyed a major American metropolis - and awakened a nation to the terrifying power of nature.

The Storm of the Century brings this legendary disaster and its aftermath into brilliant focus. No other natural disaster has ever matched the havoc caused by the awesome mix of winds, rains, and flooding that devastated this bustling metropolis and shocked a young, optimistic nation on the cusp of modernity. Exploring the impact of the disaster on a rising nation's confidence - the pain and trauma of the loss and the determination of the response - Al Roker illuminates both the energy and the limitations of the American Century, and of nature itself.

©2015 Al Roker (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

Good story poorly read.

It is a book filled with a lot of interesting information expertly written. Strikes a great balance of being entertaining and instructive but you wouldn't know by the way it's read. A case study of having inflections in all the wrong places.

Brilliantly written and thereby illuminating,

Would you consider the audio edition of The Storm of the Century to be better than the print version?

I enjoy both mediums. Through any form this historical catastrophe should be a must read for all public servants from grass-root groups straight up to the highest office of the land. Considering our brand of democracy is only as good as the education of its citizenry, each and every American, and citizens of any nation should be aware of how much our elective officials and greater still how much each citizen is prepared for disasters that WILL happen.

What did you like best about this story?

The humanizing approach of the community that went a long way to make the reader KNOW that but for the grace of God...

What about Byron Wagner’s performance did you like?

His abililty to keep the reader engaged as well as perplexed by the human frailities of character that played critical roles in the scope of this tragic catastrophy. Therefore this event was not just a natural castrophy.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes! Maybe naively, I conistently marveled at the egos that contributed to the scope of the handling of this disaster.

Any additional comments?

I hope Al Roker, with his depth and expertise in his field as well as his keen observation of human behavior, writes more on human conditions intersecting with nature and the unique historical outcomes.

Great book.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. It perfectly told the story from many different perspectives while also educating the reader on the weather bureau etc.

One complaint: learn to say our words for places like Sabine pass. It can’t be that hard to find someone to ask how it’s pronounced in our area.

Wonderful and accurate

Much research and interviewing went into this story. The voice of the reader was pleasant.

Excellent read

Lots of information about the hurricane of course but also about the National Weather Service development and their role in the story. Newspapers also play a significant role.
Individual stories are intertwined to bring a full picture of this traumatic moment in history.
Well written and read.

A gripping, sad and illuminating tale

I enjoyed this book immensely, so much that it's 4:35 AM and I just finished it. Written with the factual voice of an experienced meteorologist, it expresses far more than atmospheric facts. I learned tremendous amount of information about the Great 1900 Hurricane that I thought I already knew all about. People like Clara Barton and Isaac Kline step out of the pages of the book and reveal themselves as human beings who are both flawed and brilliant. Most of all, Galveston, rising from the ashes in more ways than one, becomes an example of survival that is almost unbelieveable. Very exciting tale for the weather fan, the fan of politics in turbulent times, and a greatly recommended book for any devotee of Texas history.

Excellent story

The audible book starts out a little slowly as there are lots of details about weather, history and basic meteorology that I was not as interested in (I was more interested in the human side of the 1900 hurricane ) but it once it began to move along, the story is very interesting and I learned a great deal! It is well researched and as someone who has visited Galveston several times and worked in recovery there after Hurricane Ike, I found this book to be so compelling. I'd recommend it to anyone who loves a good nonfiction book, especially if you enjoy historical accounts.

Exciting Story

Very detailed and told Don a personal level. I liked the writing style very much and couldn’t put the book down.

riveting and history filled

historically correct, terrifying, realistic to what happened. if I had my way, everyone would listen to or read this book.

Review of "The Storm of the Century "

This was an interesting story of an event that as never been told so vividly. It had a few flaws, in my view, of the reader, that were distracting to me. 1. The reader did not pronounce the towns in Texas, as Texans do. ie San Jacinto, Boliver, Sabine etc. if the book is about Texas he should know how to describe the location. 2. Mr. Wagner spoke in a sort of monotone that almost put me to sleep..not a good thing when you are talking about such a vivid happening. Several times I found myself going back and re listening to whole chapters. 3. Perhaps you should have gotten a Texas native reader. It just didn't seem to fit. The dialect and the subject. Having said that, the story was well written and well researched. I really would recommend it. A lot of information there that was new to me, and a fascinating tale of the awesomeness of nature. I particularly liked Mr. Roker's obvious knowledge of the subject matter.