Jerry Borrowman writes some of my very favorite non-fiction books. He writes in a way that is very easily readable. And I really like the way he focuses his books on the people who experienced things.

This book was about catastrophes worldwide. I don’t think I’d heard of even one of them before reading the book. But now I’m interested in things like the Tay Bridge in Scotland or the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Washington. I’m going to have to see if I can find more information about these!

It’s hard to imagine being in one of these kinds of tragedies, but there are tons of people that have been. And there were heroes there too. It reminds me a little of the Fred Rogers quote about looking for the helpers. You’ll always find them, just when you need them the most. And that’s one of the main focuses of this book. I love that idea.

This is an excellent book that you can read fairly quickly. I loved everything about it!

Thanks to the author, publishers and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book details 8 preventable disasters caused by the malice, greed or stupendous arrogance of people who, in most cases, never faced the consequences of their actions/inaction. I felt the terror and frustration with these stories keenly. But the uplifting stories of those who courageously helped survivors and of those who worked to prevent similar future tragedies did provide some relief.

There are villains and heroes aplenty in these pages - I can hardly believe they are real people and real events.

The stories of the 'Sultana' and the 'City of San Francisco' were the most interesting for me and I find myself wanting to know more about these catastrophes in particular.

This is a well-written, clearly presented book - although at times too technical for my tiny layperson brain. 4 stars.

This book was a good, factual non-fiction read. Not easily available, its one that had to be “wished” for as an advance read, and I was happy to get one. It would make a perfect companion on cold autumn or winter night, snuggled up with your favorite mug of hot cocoa and a warm throw. The author builds the tension, working up to the catastrophe. Then the event itself unfolds, in intense detail and heroes can come forth at any point along the timeline if people are lucky enough.

I’d never heard of these rather big events, but they weren’t apparently widely written about and took place in the century before I was born. So that makes it not all that surprising that its new to me. It also makes it more of an intriguing read. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Jerry Borrowman, and the publisher.

Catastrophes and Heroes brings together eight disasters that occurred between 1865 and 1963, when advances were made in engineering, industry and technology. This period of time was full of great inventions and forward movement in many areas of life, but occasionally shortcuts were made or poor decisions acted upon that caused loss of life and damage to homes and whole towns. Jerry Borrowman focuses on the cause of the tragedies, as well as the unsung heroes that came forward to help after the disaster.
From America's Civil War to post WWII Italy, Jerry Borrowman has brought together disasters that you've probably never heard about, unless you live in an area where one occurred. He talks about the precautions put in place to avoid future happenings, checks and balances, as well as how victims are remembered.
In the introduction he says, "We live in a world in which we are completely dependent on an almost invisible but highly engineered infrastructure that makes modern life possible...And all this is so well-designed that we hardly give it a thought-at least until something goes wrong."
I enjoy historical books, and I love that Jerry Borrowman includes lessons we can learn from the past. This is a great book for anyone who is interested in history, disasters, engineering, or technology. It is very engaging and will keep you turning pages until the end.

Catastrophes and Heroes is a remarkable book about some remarkable disasters, researched in great detail, and making wonderful use of the voices of the participants and witnesses. Some of the events are more obscure than others, but in each case, the author leads you along as to how forces came together to initiate devastating events. It is always a case of 20/20 hindsight when things go wrong on a massive scale, but with many of these historic events, there were people aware of the problems who were ignored, people, responsible for shortcutting in dangerous ways, and a lack of knowledge that proved fatal.

As we move from crisis to crisis, there are always those small unpredictable things that ultimately set off out-of-control results. Each chapter lays out the history clearly and the use of contemporary accounts is exceptional. This is a well-written fast read, and thoroughly enjoyable, despite the subject area.,

Very interesting stories about places, people, and events I was not very familiar with. I enjoyed going to the Internet and looking up pictures of each of the events and learning a little more. Sometimes the story got a bit too technical for me, like when he talked about how much water filled a dam, but those sections passed quickly enough that I could continue focusing on the story thread.

The human race has come so far.....technology, transportation, medicine, science....our knowledge and skills have grown so much in the last 200 years. But with growth also comes mistakes and failures along the way. This book gathers 8 stories of disasters caused by mistakes, lack of judgement, poor planning or just plain faulty engineering. It isn't all dark and dismal though....the stories also feature heroes who stepped up to help save lives during these man-made disasters.

Train wrecks. Dams breaking. Hurricane damage. The types of incidents are varied and the book goes in depth about what caused each disaster, the events leading up to the event, and the aftermath. Heroes who risked their lives to save others are also featured. All in all, an informative read and very interesting facts!

This is the first book by Jerry Borrowman that I've read. He has written several other books about historical events. I'm definitely going to read more!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Shadow Mountain Publishing. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

So I found this book completely fascinating, in part because I love history, and partly because the eight events described in the book are for the most part unknown tragedies. Despite their lack of notoriety, these events nevertheless changed how the world operates as future generations adjusted for the mistakes that were made, often with devastating human costs. All the information is displayed in logical, easy read format. There is so much in this book that I never knew, not only regarding tragedies that could have been avoided, but also information surrounding regional history and important people who shaped the time and the future. This is a really interesting read for anyone really, but especially for history buffs. Review posted to Goodreads, Litsy, LibraryThing, Amazon, and Facebook.

I thought this was a well written and interesting narrative of some true stories of man-made disasters and the heroes that stepped up to help save people and animals during those times. I like hearing about the good things amidst the bad as it gives me hope.

A well written and very well researched book full of interesting facts. I found it a must read for disaster fans.

If you’ve watched shows such as Engineering Catastrophes on American cable television, chances are you’ll be familiar with the eight events that author Jerry Borrowman includes in his latest book. The difference is that while the show looks at the actual engineering, here the emphasis is on the human element.

Each chapter focuses on five aspects of the disaster. First, there’s the general overview; second, the choices made by human minds in the lead up to the disaster; third, the unintended consequences such as the dam’s failure or the bridge’s collapse; next, the heroic efforts made in the aftermath by both those first on the scene and then by others in courts and corporations; and finally, the lessons learned by all concerned.

What I found most powerful about the book were the witness reports and the names of the deceased. I don’t recall having seen these in the television documentaries. Including names of some of the victims – instead of merely counting the numbers of the deceased – humanizes the disaster. These people saw what happened, they experienced what happened, and that makes the corner-cutting and other cost-saving measures mind-boggling. How can you repeat those actions when you have a report that says you’re to blame for the deaths of named individuals?

This is not an in depth look at the eight disasters featured. Look elsewhere if that’s what you want. What is different about this book is the author’s final thought. While subjective, these pages look at the motivations of all those at fault or to blame. Borrowman puts them into three categories: those who acted out of malice, those motivated by cost-cutting and greed, and the men who were probably a little too confident in their own knowledge and skills.

Notes and a full bibliography are included.

Disclaimer: Although I downloaded an Advance Reader’s Edition of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, the words and opinions below are my own.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This book is about man-made accidents. Lots of interesting stories and I see several of my patrons checking this one out.

I have to be in the right mood to read non-fiction, so I was a little hesitant to start this book, but I only got a few pages into it before I was hooked. I find history fascinating, especially when it's told in an entertaining way. Don't get me wrong, this book is not light reading material. The subject matter is pretty dark and depressing, honestly, but the author does a really good job of bringing the reader right into the situation.There were a few times when the technical terminology made it so I had a hard time picturing what was happening (mostly with the first bridge story) but overall, it was a quick and easy read.

I found myself heading to my tablet in-between stories to look up pictures and more information about some of the catastrophes, which I think is the perfect sign that it's a good story. I definitely recommend this book to all history buffs, or really, anyone who enjoys well-written non-fiction.

A fascinating look into history that is little known except to the communities that were most impacted. Jerry Borrowman has obviously done his research. The stories are well written, allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions from the many, many facts he has provided. Eight life changing catastrophes and the human element that provides witness to each. Anyone looking for true life history stories not covered by mainstream literature will truly love this book, as did I. You will definitely be asking your friends and family....Did you know?

4 out of 5 🌟Detailed and uplifting

Non-fiction books and stories about various true crime and tragedies were always popular. There's something captivating about reading about all the horrible events in history from the safety of our own reading nook. And even if homicides are way too scary for me, I'd love to read about the brave people who made history by saving lives. 'Catastrophes and Heroes' is a work about man-made disasters that could be avoided and about saviors who put their lives in jeopardy for others.


The book focuses on less known events, mostly skipped by the history books. Each story includes sections with an overview of the event (full of testimonies of eyewitnesses), choices, and circumstances that lead to the tragedy, also information about victims, and heroes. Jerry Borrowman made w humongous work researching information for his book. Each story is so in-dept, it felt like being an eyewitness myself. 'Catastrophes and Heroes' show also historical background and the stories behind peoples' decisions.


It's a delightful book for every history geek and catastrophes junkie. It's a profusely detailed in-depth work to show that each tragedy could be avoided only if people were less egoistic, greed and proud. Nevertheless, it also shows bravery and heroism that lives in people and reveals itself during the times of struggle.


<i>Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and feelings are my own.</i>

AUTHOR

Learn about Jerry Borrowman, his books, speaking engagements and his life here.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE?

This book is best suited for people who enjoy historic architecture and engineering. Anyone who likes suspense, death defying incidents and tragedy will find this book enjoyable.

SYNOPSIS

Catastrophes & Heroes is a chronological record of eight historic disasters and ends with the authors “Final Thoughts.” Each story is broken down for the reader into subsections such as: The Human Cost of Tragedy, an Overview, Fateful Choices, Victims and First Responder Heroes, and Professional Heroes.

This is a pre-release and therefore had no pictures or diagrams but the author will include period images in the final release. That being said, this copy had a notation in the proper location for each image that will eventually be included. I appreciated this concept as I could easily look online at images that would bring into focus the events described.

The subjects vary from Civil War paddle boat disasters, to train wrecks, to bridge collapses, to hurricanes and to damn failures. Each disaster tells the stories of individuals that were killed, maimed, who survived, the rescuers, the villains and the ramifications. Whether the cause of the disaster was an Act of God, greed, ignorance, or malice Jerry brings the stories to life before your eyes.

Although the stories are intriguing in their own right, I think the after effects are the most interesting. Because of these disasters, we of today are safer. Procedures have been scrutinized, and corrections emplaced to prevent these types of disasters from happening again.

CONCLUSION

Catastrophes & Heroes is an extensively researched look into a few of the world’s greatest historic disasters. The first-person monologues add to the stories and lets the reader feel as if they are really there viewing the incident in real time. Some personal stories are tragic, some are exhilarating, many are depressing, and while others are joyful.

Even though the book is superbly authored and researched, I found some of the stories more obscure. I would have liked reading about some more widely known disasters and their stories. I did learn a lot about the incidents recorded in this book and definitely found the Civil War paddle boat disaster the most interesting.

The authors “Final Thoughts” are just a rehash of what was previously covered. That section could have easily been left out of the book entirely. On balance, this book is an informative and enjoyable read, but not rememberable.

⭐⭐⭐
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank Jerry Borrowman, NetGalley, and Shadow Mountain for affording me the opportunity to review Catastrophes & Heroes.

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Catastrophes and Heroes: True Stories of Man-Made Disasters was an interesting read. I am giving it four stars.

***Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.***

4 stars

I found this book to be very enjoyable, considering the subject material. The story consisted of 8 chapters, each covering different disasters from 1865 – 1963, all which ultimately were found to be man-made. The only one that I had heard about was the Labor Day hurricane that devastated Florida in 1935.

Each story gave a breakdown of what led to each disaster (greed, malice, engineering misunderstandings of the time period), but also of the heroism of those that stepped in to assist in each case.

First of all, I have to confess that I probably love this book so much because my under grad degree is in History. The stories the author chose to share really explore the breath and depth of our humanity. If you’re a fan of trains, bridges, dams or have an engineering background you will fall in love with us book. Even though the stories take place in different times and places, there is a common thread that goes through them all. I like to think that each of the stories in this book shows that the good in people ultimately outweighs the bad.

This was a fascinating book. I liked how the author broke down each of the events into sections. The only event I've heard of before was the Tacoma one. Thus it was fascinating to read about other disasters that history doesn't touch on, perhaps because they are man made. Each story is a book into itself but they were told succinctly and thoroughly to understand the cause and effect. I look forward to more of this authors work.