Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2021 -

This collection presents diverse studies of climate disasters and human responses, with a particular focus on how knowledge of past catastrophes and resilience in their aftermath can contribute to risk reduction in the future. In section 1 ("Fire"), the editors and contributors pay special attention to volcanic eruptions and their consequences, considering, among other topics, the Laacher See volcanic eruption in Germany 12,900 years ago, and how a similar eruption today would devastate the European economic system; the potential risks created by the destruction of nuclear power plants by volcanic eruptions and earthquakes around the Ring of Fire; how societies in Central America and Mexico have reacted to hurricanes and volcanic eruptions; and the impact of climate disasters on societies across North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Section 2 ("Water") treats water hazards such as hurricanes and droughts, covering the impacts of Hurricane Sandy and Hurricane Katrina; the mid-Holocene drought in Europe and the major societal changes that resulted from it; floods and droughts caused by El Nino and La Nina in Peru; and the modern water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa. This is a must-read book on how the world today will face and deal with recurrent disasters through the lens of deep history over time.Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers through faculty.