The Danger Files: Real-Life Disasters

Danger Files

by Anna Crowley Redding, Robbie Cathro (Illustrator)

From the Titanic to the Boston molasses flood, investigate five famous historical disasters just like a real reporter—through facts, eyewitnesses, and clues—with Emmy-winning journalist Anna Crowley Redding.

Delve deeper into some of the most dramatic disasters in history! Using case files full of firsthand accounts, critical facts, do-at-home experiments, and clues, readers can become disaster detectives and determine for themselves what happened and why. Take on the sinking of the Titanic, the crash of the Hindenburg, the Great Influenza epidemic of 1918, the Boston molasses flood, and the fire that decimated the city of Chicago. A “Your Mission!” introduction gets readers actively involved, and an inviting layout that evokes the feel of a working case file, complete with paperclipped notes and important pictures, keeps them eager for the next clue. Author Anna Crowley Redding brings her extensive journalism background to this engrossing dive into history, and Robbie Cathro’s active illustrations bring the scenes—and the real people involved—to life. Back matter includes extensive source notes and a bibliography for young journalists who want to get an even bigger scoop.

Genres: Nonfiction, Middle Grade, History

208 pages, Paperback

Published October 7, 2025

About the author

Before diving into the deep end of writing books, Anna Crowley Redding’s first career was as an Emmy-award winning investigative television reporter, anchor, and journalist. The recipient of multiple Edward R. Murrow awards and recognized by the Associated Press for her reporting, Anna now focuses her stealthy detective skills on digging up great stories for young readers — which, as it turns out, is her true passion. Anna's books have been translated into Russian and Czech.

Reviews

[Ashlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an adult, I truly enjoyed this book. This was a little advanced for my six year old, but I kind of expected that. He got through about half of the first story before he was done and a couple pages into another story. He did seem to like it, but for a six year old, I'm not surprised he lost interest since there weren't pictures on every page. However, I loved this book. I honestly didn't want to put it down and was pulled into each of the stories. This went through several real-life disasters that happened and explained them in a narrative way. I loved that the author included little bits of information throughout so you could piece together why things happened; things like how fire is made and how it spreads. This just added a little more to the stories to keep it engaging. I thought the illustrations were very beautiful. For anyone who loves history or historical events, this is a great read. It's perfect for middle-grade readers as well or more advanced younger readers who enjoy real-life events.

I received a free book from the publisher, which does not impact my review.

[YSBR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kids who love mayhem will enjoy this first in a projected nonfiction series that allows them to investigate the causes and courses of five real life disasters: the Great Chicago Fire, the sinking of the Titanic, the Spanish Flu, the Boston Molasses Flood, and the crash of the Hindenburg. Using parallel construction, Redding retells these stories in engaging prose, providing mountains of details and first-hand accounts (from young observers) plus “danger clues” and “fact file” inserts. As she charts these famous incidents, she supports readers with bold face titles alerting us to times, dates, and locations. Liberal use of black-and-white digital illustrations in a loose, cartoon-style provides both textual support and visual interest. We get to see a blueprint of the Titanic’s hull, a Black middle school history teacher who served in WWI, and an exciting escape from the doomed Hindenburg. Each chapter closes with some discussion of the disaster's long-term impact, such as changes in Chicago’s building code to improve safety. Redding pays special attention to the vulnerable people impacted by these events, especially in the cases of the Chicago fire and the Boston molasses explosion, which disproportionately affected low-income Black residents and Irish and Italian immigrants. By presenting questions and framing the research as a puzzle, she cleverly allows young readers to experience how professional historians gather and interpret information through the use of primary sources. Back matter includes a detailed source list, robust bibliography, and an index. The inclusion of the occasional simple science experiment also provides some STEM connections. Link to complete review: https://ysbookreviews.wordpress.com/2...

[Melanie Ellsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Danger Files is fast paced, pulling young readers right into the action of some of our most memorable disasters. Kids may know a lot about the Titanic, but the chapter in this book will make them feel like they are actually onboard, experiencing events in real time. Readers also get a chance to explore regional events that may be new to them, like the Great Molasses flood in Boston. The structure of the book, with information broken into “Fact Files,” “Danger Clues,” “Eyewitness” testimony, and moving personal stories, will keep readers hooked. This book is also a great option for school libraries and classrooms, with lessons in cause/effect, predicting outcomes, and learning from the mistakes of our past. The lessons learned during the Spanish flu epidemic and how they applied to the Covid-19 outbreak will resonate with readers of all ages. Despite the tragic nature of these disasters, the book leaves us at the end of each chapter with a sense of hope for how we come together to fix problems and make our communities stronger. I predict that children who pick up this book will be our future historians, scientists, journalists, researchers, and problem-solvers!

[Darlene Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even as an adult, I felt the tension and had to keep reading. Fast-paced reporting leads to fast-paced page turning when the Chicago Fire, sinking of the Titanic, Spanish Flu, Boston molasses flood, and Hindenburg explosion come alive in The Danger Files. Periodic time notations count down history as readers receive hints from danger clues and learn the facts from eyewitness reports and fact files — all artfully incorporated with lots of white space for easy reading. Dramatic black and white illustrations ramp up tension and add fascinating details like a cross-section of the Titanic’s hull. To add a hands-on element, there are a few simple related experiments for readers to try. Each story ends with an Impact! section to highlight the lessons learned as a result of the catastrophe. Those lessons were painful, but The Danger Files makes learning history fun!

[Laurie Warchol · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Danger Files is a collection of historic disasters, each broken down into a variety of text layers exploring an angle of the event. For ages 7-10, the lively language in the main text is sure to engage the attention of even reluctant readers with additional text options like Danger Clues, Fact Files, eyewitness accounts, and an Impact section to examine what has been changed since the disaster. The author uses skills learned during her years as an investigative journalist to dig into the “whys” of some of histories worst disasters. An interesting read, perfect for readers looking for a deeper dive into history. Many opportunities are presented for classroom discussions and reflections.

[Jennybeast · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book to hook kids on an interest in history -- just enough story, delivered in short bursts with asides. I loved that most of it is based on eye-witness accounts. It is, predictably, full of deaths, given the subject matter; but I liked that the author talks about how these disasters led to change. The illustrations are lively and the storytelling is accessible. I also liked the mix of disasters -- the Titanic and Great Chicago Fire come up pretty often, but the Spanish Flu is a very timely choice given the recent pandemic, and the Boston Molasses Flood and the Hindenburg are less commonly covered.

[Allison Haehnel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Danger Files take Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales style stories to a new level. History is approachable and scientifically explained, where appropriate, in a manner that is easy to grasp for upper elementary and middle grade readers. Danger clues, experiments, and illustrations don’t distract from the story because they break down details to help readers understand the disasters. Children are the focus of each story as eyewitnesses which also supports the readability for UE and MG students.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crowley relays the stories of 5 real-life disasters: the great Chicago fire, the Titanic, the Spanish flu, the Boston molasses flood, and the Hindenburg. She includes eyewitness accounts and scientific experiments readers can conduct to learn more about the cause of each disaster.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging and informative! This is a cool book that should be easy to promote to students. I love that the author uses the eyewitness accounts of children along with scientific clues that prompt the reader to play investigator. This is a nonfiction win for upper elementary readers.

[Lesa Dierking · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like how the stories in this book are set up, and the extra information, adding details, making it like a case file that can help kids understand easier, relate to more hopefully.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting.

[Shaundell Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a delightful little book. The author uses facts, danger clues, eyewitness insights, and fast file experiments to share five disasters in history.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 real life disasters told from the perspective of a child (in most cases). Includes The Great Chicago Fire, The Titanic, The Spanish Flu, The Great Molasses Flood and The Hindenburg.

There is so much to like about this book (series). Information is presented referencing primary sources, each story contains a “try this yourself” experiment relative to the story and the telling is engaging and quick with illustrations, and side bars. I’m getting the whole series.