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  • Published: 15 January 2017
  • ISBN: 9780670785360
  • Imprint: Viking
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 80
  • RRP: $39.99

When the Earth Shakes

Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Tsunamis



In this exciting launch title for PYRG/Smithsonian books, New York Times bestselling author Simon Winchester tells the gripping story of what happens when the earth is all shook up!

Earthquakes,
volcanoes,
tsunamis.

Headline-making natural disasters with devastating consequences for millions of people. But what do we actually know about these literally earth-shaking events?

New York Times bestselling author, explorer, journalist, and geologist Simon Winchester—who’s been shaken by earthquakes in New Zealand, skied through Greenland to help prove the theory of plate tectonics, and even charred the soles of his boots climbing a volcano—looks at the science, technology, and societal impact of these inter-connected natural phenomena.

A master nonfiction storyteller, Winchester digs deep into the powerful natural forces that shape the earth, exploring the how and why of world-changing events from the 19th-century’s infamous volcanic eruption at Krakatoa and the earthquake that flattened San Francisco, to the 21st-century tsunamis that devastated Indonesia and Japan. It’s a gripping story about what happens when our seemingly unmovable planet shakes, explodes, and floods—all richly illustrated with fascinating historical and stunning contemporary photographs.

  • Published: 15 January 2017
  • ISBN: 9780670785360
  • Imprint: Viking
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 80
  • RRP: $39.99

About the author

Simon Winchester

Simon Winchester was born and educated in England. He was a foreign correspondent for more than thirty years includng twelve years for the Guardian in Asia, reporting on the Hong Kong handover to China for the newspaper in 1997, and twenty years as the Asia editor for Condé Nast Traveler. He is the author of many highly acclaimed and bestsellng works of non-fiction. He now lives in Massachusetts.

Also by Simon Winchester

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Praise for When the Earth Shakes

Praise for Simon Winchester:

"Simon Winchester never disappoints . . . Inspiring and engaging." --Tom Brokaw on The Men Who United the States

"Elegant and scrupulous." --New York Times Book Review on The Professor and the Madman

"Winchester once again demonstrates a keen knack for balancing rich and often rigorous historical detail with dramatic tension and storytelling." --Publishers Weekly, starred review of Krakatoa

"Winchester brings a knowledge as vast and deep as his subject to this history of the Atlantic Ocean." --Entertainment Weekly on Atlantic

"As with every book he's written and narrated, Winchester makes abstruse subjects available and fascinating for every reader and listener." --Publishers Weekly, starred review on The Man Who Loved China

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