Disasters

On the night of February 18, 1952, during one of the worst winter storms that New England has ever seen, two oil tankers just off the shore of Cape Cod were torn in half by the force of the storm....

Rodman Philbrick presents a gripping yet poignant novel about a 12-year-old boy and his dog who become trapped in New Orleans during the horrors of Hurricane Katrina....

Award-winning author Jim Murphy whisks you back in time to witness the disastrous 1871 Chicago fire....

The Great Fire of 1871 was one of the most colossal disasters in American history - with damage so profound that few people believed the city could ever rise again....

An eight-audiobook collection from the creators of the New York Times Best-Selling What Was? series that details the most famous disasters in history, including the Titanic, Pompeii, and the Great Depression. Perfect for curious young listeners, these eight titles provide exciting details about...

When a forty-seven-foot sailboat disappears in the Gulf Stream in the throes of a disastrous storm, it leaves behind three weary passengers struggling to stay alive....

The incredible true story of the twelve boys trapped with their coach in a flooded cave in Thailand and their inspiring rescue—as seen in Ron Howard's Thirteen Lives. On June 23, 2018, twelve members of the Wild Boars soccer team and their coach were exploring the Tham Luang cave complex in...

Let's explore together how scientists, engineers, and lots of everyday people are working to make sure that the wildlife so essential to Earth's health and beauty continues to freely move through the landscapes, waterways, and skylines of this richly inhabited planet.

The panic-filled summer of 1916, when multiple deadly shark attacks shocked the nation, is chronicled in this gripping addition to the New York Times Best-Selling What Was? series. On July 1, 1916, witnesses watched in horror as twenty-eight-year-old Charles Vansant was attacked and killed by a...

The unbelievable true story of one of the strangest disasters in history—part of the New York Times bestselling What Was? series, featuring 16 pages of photos. On an unusually warm winter day in Boston, Massachusetts, a storage tank in the city's North End burst, flooding the neighborhood with...

At 800-feet long, the Hindenburg was the largest airship ever built--just slightly smaller than the Titanic! Also of a disastrous end, the zeppelin burst into flame as spectators watched it attempt to land in Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937. In under a minute, the Hindenburg was gone...

Walter Isaacson’s #1 New York Times bestselling history of our third scientific revolution: CRISPR, gene editing, and the quest to understand the code of life itself, is now adapted for young readers! When Jennifer Doudna was a sixth grader in Hilo, Hawaii, she came home from school one...

From bestselling author Kenneth C. Davis comes a fascinating account of the Spanish influenza pandemic 100 years after it first swept the world in 1918. "Davis deftly juggles compelling storytelling, gruesome details, and historical context. More Deadly Than War reads like a terrifying dystopian...

Buckle up and embark on a journey through some of the notable weather phenomena and natural disasters that occur on our planet....

In this young readers edition of the New York Times bestselling, Pulitzer Prize–winning The Sixth Extinction, Elizabeth Kolbert tells us why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before. Over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass...

When Mount St. Helens began releasing steam, nearby residents were told to get off the mountain....

Learn about Tornado Alley, the area in the United States where tornadoes are most frequently formed and often cause the most damage. Robert Miller and Ernest Fawbush coined the term "Tornado Alley" after studying the pattern of tornadoes that occurred around Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma...

Rhinos in Nebraska tells the story of the Ashfall Fossil Beds, where more than 200 perfectly preserved fossils have been found....

In this addition to the What Was? series, kids will experience what it was like to be in San Francisco in 1906 when the ground buckled in a major, catastrophic earthquake. One early April morning in 1906, the people of San Francisco were jolted awake by a mammoth earthquake—one that registered...

Each book in the True Horse Stories focuses on a contemporary horse from a different part of the world, and each animal is, in his or her own way, a hero. PBJ Decks Smokin Gun (Gunner) is an American Paint Horse, one of the many of Heather Lott Goodwin's herd, and a valuable show animal that won...

The terrifying true story of the deadly blizzard that unexpectedly slammed the Midwest, catching many young lives in its path—part of the New York Times bestselling What Was? series, featuring 16 pages of photos. On January 12, 1888, an unforseen blizzard broke out in the middle of an...

Tornadoes tear through the land, skipping over one street and devastating the next....

The notorious true story of a group of pioneers forced to make impossible decisions when trapped in the mountains for an entire winter—part of the New York Times bestselling What Was? series, featuring 16 pages of photos. In the winter of 1846-47, a group of eighty-seven pioneers heading from...

Book six in the True Rescue series for young listeners, this pulse-pounding account of disaster and survival at sea follows the HMS Bounty whose fateful course through Superstorm Sandy would lead to one of the most heroic Coast Guard rescue missions ever....

Join Henry, one of the stars of the IMAX film Superpower Dogs, as he emBARKS on a journey to become an avalanche rescue dog in this gripping true story, perfect for fans of Max! In Whistler, British Columbia, dogs can be found riding chairlifts, perched on skiers' shoulders, and even descending...