When The Dust Settles: Searching For Hope After Disaster

by Lucy Easthope

"An antidote to despair"  Daily Mirror

When a plane crashes, a bomb explodes, a city floods or a pandemic begins, Lucy Easthope's phone starts to ring.
Lucy is a world-leading authority on recovering from disaster. She holds governments to account, supports survivors and helps communities to rebuild. She has been at the centre of the most seismic events of the last few decades, advising on everything from the 2004 tsunami and the 7/7 bombings to the Grenfell fire and the war in Ukraine. Lucy's job is to pick up the pieces and get us ready for what comes next.
  
Lucy takes us behind the police tape to scenes of chaos, and into government briefing rooms where confusion can reign. She also looks back at the many losses and loves of her life and career, and tells us how we can all build back after disaster.
  
When the Dust Settles  lifts us up, showing that humanity, hope and humour can - and must - be found on the darkest days.

THE SUNDAY TIMES  BESTSELLER

A RADIO 4  BOOK OF THE WEEK

CHOSEN AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE TELEGRAPH AND THE NEW STATESMAN

"A marvellous book" Rev Richard Coles

"Gripping... filled with compassion." Sunday Times

"Remarkable... hopeful and uplifting."  Mail on Sunday

"Enthralling... vivid and humane"  Observer

"Exemplary" New Statesman

Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Biography, Memoir, Politics

304 pages, Paperback

Published October 10, 2023

Reviews

[Iona Sharma]

Superb. Absolutely magnificent book, that's an account of the author's storied career as a disaster response professional who has worked on nearly every disaster you've heard of: 9/11, 7/7, Grenfell, Lac-Mégantic, the Bali bombings, etc. It's that, and also a low-key memoir - she relates how what brought her to the field was being a Scouse child living through Hillsborough, and I sat up and paid attention; she writes about our shared home city with this sharp-edged tenderness that boded well for the rest of the book - which covers her career but also marriage and struggles with baby loss and miscarriage. This sounds like it should be glurgy or maudlin, but it's not; it's sharp and telling and interestingly incisive on what it is to live in a body - she spends her days and nights around dead bodies, and has some things to say about the embodied nature of humanity, about what it is to live in a woman's body - and oh, it's actually very funny. Honestly a tour de force of a book.

[Helen Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book! For an insight into humanity after a tragedy and how to treat people and their belongings with dignity and kindness.

[Heidi Collie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely incredible. I really had no idea about emergency planning and the crucial work that people like Lucy Easthope do. This book covered all the big national and international disasters I grew up seeing in the news and it was amazing to hear about how Lucy worked on each project, in planning or recovery. I couldn’t recommend this book more 💯.

[Nicola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Utterly gripping. Fascinating, depressing and inspiring by turns - above all informative, and poignant. The chapter on Grenfell reminded me just how easy it is to not know, and equally the importance of knowing - of bearing witness. A valuable read.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A real insight into something most people will hopefully never come across - coping with the aftermath of disaster.

Lucy Easthope is Britain’s top emergency planner and the book shows how important it is to always plan for the worst scenario.

Lucy herself seems to have her fair share of personal medical disasters in her family too and you can’t help admire her but also you come away feeling more grateful for the times when nothing untoward happens that we all take for granted.

Definitely an eye opener that will make you look at the world in a different way once you have finished it.

[Tayah Wastie · Rating 5 out of 5]

First non-fiction book I’ve read in a while but the author writes in such an engaging way that it still feels like a story. Wish I read this for my sociology degree, it’s so niche but so interesting! You really have no idea about what goes on behind the scenes of emergencies and disasters so it was a very eye opening read.

[A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting although slightly repetitive and superficial in content.covid section more. Interesting and how she started

[Mo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A look behind the scenes of the worlds disasters. Lucy Easthope is definitely a different kind of person, but thank goodness for people like her to make our world safer. However I did find it unsettling that the UK govt has spent the 2000's cutting back on the skills of people like her.

[Mwsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little insight into the world’s disasters. Having met Lucy at a Family Liaison DVI training day last year, I was reading the book with her voice in my head.

Lucy is very passionate but I can imagine that some hierarchy would take her passion and non stop talking as annoying. But to be fair, Lucy is a good talker but also lives in the real world (unlike some politicians and Chiefs of Emergency Services who don’t like getting their hands dirty)!

I think those who deal with major incidents need to take time to have training days but also take that day as a way of talking about what you have dealt with and the families we work with to continue to understand what the public want and what can actually realistically be achieved and never be afraid to have honest conversations with the public or public authorities.

There will always be room for improvement in all walks of life but dealing with the here and now is important.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting, a quick and easy read! Lucy’s is a job I’ve never given much thought to and she explains a lot about the challenges, misconceptions and cultural shifts that she has experienced over her career, tying them in to well known disasters. The focus on recovering the dead and laying them to rest wasn’t something I’d expected and was maybe the most prevalent aspect of her anecdotes throughout. This detail alongside the stories of rebuilding communities made this a book that I’ll remember and will definitely make me look at disasters with mass casualties in a different way in future.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic read. So nice to have real expertise presented without any useless humility or apology - Easthope is good at this, she knows it, and everyone else knows it too - but with clarity, care, and purpose.

I'm glad I was reading this book over the last month, and I'm glad I'll have it in the back of my mind every time I watch the news from now on. I will see the world differently.

Also, I feel a little less hopeless about my contribution to the mental health crisis in young people being mostly "would you like a cup of tea?", because that matters! It really matters!

[Viki Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A mixture of personal and events that happen. A book written like this could be dry and depressing but there is a thread of hope through it especially of Lucy and people like her who want to help people in the worst of circumstances.
Also shows the willing (or lack of willing) in government for this work which is so heart wrenching

[Morven MacSwan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Been a very long time since I have finished a book in one sitting (thank you Avanti West Coast for the uninterrupted reading environment). This book was gripping from the start; the concept of Hiraeth is relevant to everyone but found it particularly relatable. Deffo scratched an itch in my human geography brain 😂

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Questions you may have wondered about in times of disaster are addressed with humanity & humour; a great read. Of necessity gruesome at times, but also showing a resolve to learn from dreadful events, to cope with them compassionately, & to avoid repeating errors in response.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book could have been depressing but in fact the author has made it hopeful. Lucy is a remarkable person who in real life deals with disaster recovery at the highest level. A story sharing her life’s work. Worth a read

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, unexpected find. A perfect combination of unique experience, insight and humanity.

I was also quite thrilled that her comment on the Covid mess mirrored many of my thought. The destruction of the social fabric by panicked government workers.

[Nicole K · Rating 4 out of 5]

After hearing Lucy at last years RCGP in Glasgow I had to read. Hats off for the work you do. In the book discussing topics from pandemics in professional life to pregnancy loss in personal life. Some of the stories made me smile and some shed a tear.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite what I was expecting, but interesting.

Deals mainly with the aftermath of disasters and the decisions on how to deal with the victims and their relatives and friends.

Last chapter on Covid was another eye opener.

[Jenny Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave me a lump in my throat over and over again.

Lucys descriptions of real disasters are visceral, but more so in the emotional sense, than being particularly gory.

It is a memoir of an incredible career, with a reminder to look outwards, and be kind.

[Brett Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

[Beverley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing ,brutally honest in places but very revealing

[Reuben Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic insight into disaster planning and recovery and the particular humanity shown by the planners no matter the disaster’s particular details itself.

[Dave Parr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book. A study in how to show compassion at the most difficult times

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly readable book about bringing humanity to major disaster planning by paying attention to every detail.

[Kimberley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into When the Dust Settles expecting a classic crime-style read—lots of forensic detail, investigation, and “how-they-crack-the-case” moments. What I actually found was something quite different: a powerful look at the work behind disasters, particularly the often overlooked and heartbreaking task of managing the dead and supporting their families.

It wasn’t the book I thought I was picking up, but it turned out to be far more moving and insightful. The writing is clear, thoughtful, and deeply humane, offering a rare glimpse into a little-known industry that quietly carries enormous responsibility.

Surprising, sobering, and ultimately fascinating—I’d definitely recommend it.

[Olya Homonchuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating read. Learned lots of rather grousome trivia and giggled frequently following Lucy's journey through "behind the scenes" of disasters.

[Nimalee Ravi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was my first non-fiction read of the year, and what an incredible read. I had no idea so much work and care goes into critical incidents. As an Emergency Planning Officer, Lucy had to make so many decisions and sacrifices. She has written so well about her experiences and emotions and yet captivated the reality of her work. There were places where I sobbed and laughed. If you haven't read any non-fiction this year, this is a must-read.