“What matters is doing something about the weather.”

This narrative nonfiction book explores innovative ways modern science is used to predict and track the weather. Research in these areas is especially important now when extreme weather events are steadily becoming more frequent and more, well, extreme.

The chapters I found most fascinating were those about tornadoes, fire, and hurricanes. I was also intrigued by the ways weather researchers connect to special groups in ways that are more effective than traditional methods like automated call lines for the Amish, text messages to farmers in third world countries, and cooling station benches for residents of urban heat islands.

I was surprised how relevant this book felt to my own life even though I am not a meteorologist or a weather geek. Almost every chapter had some element I could connect to.

The audiobook is narrated by Keith Brown. I thought he did a good job conveying a lot of information in an engaging way.

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future

Cloud warriors is a crash course in all things weather. From the science behind forecasts to the social reasons why people don't heed weather alerts. Some of it was interesting some of it wasn't. The way I practically force fed myself this book to get the review done on time probably didn't help. Parts felt hurried and other parts dragged on. The majority of it was very carefully not political but still accurate. I thought the chapter on extreme heat and the authors own weather collection was really interesting. I would recommend reading it slower than I did, there's some very interesting parts to it.

As always, thank you to the publisher and Netgallery for this audiobook.

Thank you to Tantor Audio, the author and NetGalley for an ALC in return for an honest review

If you are reading this as a layman then this audiobook will be just to your taste. To make the meteorological science more accessible to a wider audience the author has succesfully simpliflied a lot of the technical content. So for those of you who are more scientifically adept this book may lack depth for you. As I am not scientifically minded this book suited me down to the ground. Not too technical yet not dumbed down.

Cloud Warriors succeeds in both informing and inspiring. It’s a timely read that showcases the critical role forecasting will play in our climate future and also celebrates the people pushing it forward.

The narration by Keith Brown is steady and engaging, without being overly dramatic. He strikes a great balance between clarity and emotion. He brings a sense of urgency and professionalism that perfectly complements Weber’s writing.

This audiobook is not only educational, it’s downright thrilling.

#CloudWarriors #NetGalley

Wow. I wish I could make every American read this book-- we would all be living in a better world.

Cloud Warriors is largely a warning to the countless people in the US who fail to understand (or in many cases just willfully ignore) the catastrophic effects of defunding NOAA and putting totally unqualified people in charge of FEMA.

While this book is deadly serious, it is extremely compelling and reads like fiction, making it palatable even for readers who hesitate to pick up non-fiction. Weber's straight forward, science-based approach goes through the three main weather concerns (hurricanes, tornadoes, and extreme heat) and explains the importance of continuing the research that has been going on behind the scenes for decades. Having the most reliable, up to date information allows people to prepare themselves for coming weather threats and literally saves lives.

I also think it's important to note that while Weber often cites decisions made by various administrations and doesn't pull any punches about the resulting chaos, he never directly or aggressively goes after the current administration, keeping the entire book as professional and apolitical as possible which is no easy task in today's world. So many kudos, 10/10, 5 stars, I'm begging everyone to read this.

I received an ALC of the audiobook from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Weather! I just think it's neat!

This is a very worthwhile read, although it took a while for me to really get into it. The first half felt very US-centric to me. A lot of the discussion of the role of the public vs private sector felt like it came from a very US perspective without the impact of that context really being acknowledged. I am glad that at the end of the book the author comes back to making the US political context explicit in discussing privatisation and inequity.

The second half, although still often geographically focused on the US, felt much more generalisable, and I found it way more engaging. The book has a big focus on how weather forecasting is applied and communicated to the general public, and how critical it is to do it well. I'd never thought about the implications of forecasting in that way, and it was great to explore that in this book. The efforts to reach underserved people in different contexts with warnings and information - like the farmers in Ghana without smartphones, and the Amish with limitations on the use of tech - were really well explained and thoughtfully discussed.

I found the chapter on extreme heat especially fascinating. I'd never thought of heat as being a threat in the same way a hurricane is, and it was very interesting to have it explained. I am curious about the emphasis on air conditioning as a solution, probably because I live somewhere where it's not at all standard for our houses to have it. Despite the book's strong focus on climate change and sustainability, I don't remember the negative impact of air conditioning on the environment coming up much in this section.

I also happened to be in NYC when Superstorm Sandy hit it, so I was particularly interested in the discussion of the European model that most accurately predicted it.

The audiobook was well produced and narrated.