Disasters

Scholastic Discover More

by David Burnie

"A close-up look at nature's biggest disasters"--Cover.

Genres: Nonfiction

103 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2013

About the author

David Andrew Burnie is an accomplished zoologist who was a nature reserve ranger before becoming a natural history author and editor. A prolific writer of many books, including several on dinosaurs, he has seen many of his titles win educational awards and science prizes. His titles for Kingfisher include Kingfisher Knowledge: Endangered Planet and The Kingfisher Illustrated Dinosaur Encyclopedia, which was nominated for the Aventis Prize for Science Books in 2002.

Reviews

[Kaden A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book you can learn a lot of things about the wheather.

[Sam Smerbeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: Disasters
Author: David Burnie
Illustrator: David Burnie
Genre: Photographic Essay
Theme(s): Natural Disasters, Human Interaction w/ Environment
Opening Line/Sentence: “I am never afraid, because I have seen so many eruptions in 23 years that even if I die tomorrow, I don’t care.”
Brief Book Summary: This book goes through all types of natural disasters and explains what they are and the worst ones that have been recorded. Disasters include tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis, and more!
Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
Nancy (Smith) Latanision (Kutztown University Book Review, Fall 2013)
As one of the titles in the Scholastic Discover More series, Disasters depicts disastrous weather, unstable earth, troubled waters, how people cause disasters, and threats from space. Rich color illustrations and photographs bring reality to the reader. The outstanding visuals include graphs, cross-sections, and timelines. Factual, anecdotal text complements the visuals. As this is not an in-depth treatment of the topics additional resources are included on some pages with links to websites. Readers will become engrossed with the high interest presentation of subjects such as killer cold, weather tech and scientists, landslides, volcanoes, and tsunamis to mention a few. Burnie brings science to life in these explorations. A glossary and index aid in research. Students will definitely enjoy browsing and getting lost through the pages. An added attraction to this title is a link to a downloadable free digital companion book, Storm Chasers and Other Disaster Heroes. Highly recommended for students and adults. Category: Nonfiction. 2013, Scholastic, $15.99. Ages 10 to adult. 
(PUBLISHER: Scholastic (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2013.) 
Professional Recommendation/Review #2:
Scholastic's 'Discover More' titles are designed to capture the interest of confident readers in grades 3-5, and provide eye-catching covers and appealing subject high in drama and real science. WEATHER provides the latest weather science and what can happen during the world's worst weather, covering storms, hail, and everyday and special occurrences. REPTILES is packed with close-up and eye-catching photos of snakes and other reptiles, from lizards to crocodiles, and offers the latest scientific facts about their lives and habits.DISASTERS by David Burnie joins the 'Discover More' series, providing an in-depth look at nature's biggest disasters. These are all powerful titles packed with amazing photos, graphics, and the latest science information backed by further online information for added wonder. Highly recommended! Books in Series ...., Scholastic Inc., $15.99. grades 3-5 
(PUBLISHER: Scholastic (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2013.) 
Response to Two Professional Reviews:
The first review does into nice depth on what we can expect from this book, while the second reviewer speaks about the series that this book belongs into. Both do mention the gist of this book, but the first reviewer breaks down exactly what is in the book, from topics to visual aides. Both reviews also exclaim that they highly recommend this book!
Evaluation of Literary Elements:
This type of book is loaded with pictures, so much that the text almost seems overpowered, which I’m sure was the goal. Photographs of all types of historical and more recent natural disasters are present. The text is just a guide to explain what the photos are, but the reader will be most likely to stare right at the pictures, just like I did when reviewing this book.
Consideration of Instructional Application:
This is a great book to have in my classroom library. When teaching a unit on the Earth and Nature, this book will surely come in handy. This can used in writers workshop where I can have the students write about a real or imagined event when they have been in/seen a natural disaster.

[K.L. Bernard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wicked weather, earthquakes, flooding, tsunamis, wildfires and the threat of asteroids has Scholastic providing readers with a closer look at some of our world's biggest disasters. We all know that no place is safe. Recent events are depicted with real life photos of wildfires in Russia, monsoons in Pakistan and the well known earthquake in Haiti that left over one million people homeless. Readers will not see only the devastation left behind but also the tools and people who work hard to predict when these events may occur. Meteorologist collect evidence and launch weather balloons that carry equipment right into thunderclouds so they can measure the atmosphere. The earth has been unstable for a long time. Readers will learn about landslides and how the earth's crusts move. Each page is filled with alarming yet interesting facts along with diagrams and guides to help readers better understand how disasters can happen. Links to websites that house videos, weather warnings and alerts can be found here too. Readers will also become engaged as they learn more about global warming and its causes. The earth is becoming over populated which is a great burden for our planet. The United Nations called October 31, 2011 “7 Billion Day” the day the world's population reached 7 billion. Asteroids are another threat, readers can visit the NASA website to keep up-to-date on what's coming from space. A glossary in the back will help readers understand complex words found throughout this amazing guide. Parents and teachers will love this treasure chest of information. This guide will be handy in any classroom and will open up dialogue with students who watch the news and question the world around them. Librarians can utilize the links and resources to keep students informed and eager to learn more about the photographers, researchers and the types of equipment used ,as well as, why disasters happen.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

This title is part of the exceptional Discover More series. It shows readers how unpredictable and destructive our planet can be. Stunning photographs show the effects of natural disasters like killer weather, earthquakes and volcanoes. Stirring text describes the human toll of these catastrophes and includes disquieting facts. “Eyewitness” boxes feature accounts from survivors. Numerous charts, graphs, maps and illustrations explain how various disasters develop. Contemporary catastrophes, such Katrina and the Haitian earthquake are covered as well as devastating events from the past. Latter chapters address the human cause of disasters such as wildfires and pandemics and the potential devastation of global warming and overpopulation. The final pages address the conceivable danger of asteroids and the death of the sun. Introductory pages show the reader how to use the unique features of the book. The book is a fantastic resource and is ideal for browsing. An added bonus is a free digital companion book, “Storm Chasers and other Disaster Heroes”. Back matter includes a glossary and index. Of course, the paper binding is a negative, but the book is a must for school libraries.

[Brenda Kahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this series and this particular one fits beautifully into a sixth grade science unit. The over-sized format is inviting, chock full of photos, text boxes and artist's renderings. Organized by type of disaster, each chapter asks and answers some essential questions pertinent to the topic. Web sites and suggestions for further reading are plentiful and, as usual, the accompanying ebook is not to be missed.

[Araceli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fiction companion I chose for Disaster is Hurricane by Terry Trueman. Disaster goes into detail about various natural disasters such as Tornadoes, Hurricanes and avalanches. It includes facts about the occurences themselves such as frequency, cause, and famous disaster in history. It also goes into survival necessities, which is why I paired it with Hurricane. The novel details the Hurricane hitting and destroying a small village and the and recovery afterwards.

[Jasmine DeMario · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting book about natural disasters. From tornadoes to earthquakes, this book has it all. There are diagrams and photographs that help explain how each disaster occurs. I liked how this book included photos of people and places where each natural disaster occurred and showed people who survived these natural disasters.

[Sharie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's 5x hotter than the surface of the sun?

These are the types of answers you'll find in SDM: Disasters.
The data in the book is up-to-date. The online companion is even more current.

MC: does include lots of death tolls that might keep certain kids up at night.

[Kyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skimpy for the adult reader but very well done for younger readers, realistic without being scary.

[Laurie James]

I chose to put this book on my science bookshelf because it discusses all of the weather disasters known. It also provides examples of the disasters and dates on when they occurred.

[CJ]

good

[Carlee Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book, of all the weather books I have read, has been the most interesting. It really lays out information in such an interesting way about the various kinds of weather disasters: Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Avalanches, Ice Storms, etc.
A few things I learned was that a) 90% of avalanches are actually triggered by people ( I did not know that!!) and that most hurricanes last for about 9 days.

The coolest part of this book was that it not only gave cool facts, but it lays out why each natural disaster occurs and the way it occurs in a format that is easy to follow AND it talks about several incidences where these natural disasters have occurred in history and fun facts about those disasters.