Customer Reviews

Earthquake Days: The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake & Fire in 3-D

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

The author is a regional historian, musician, and brewer, who has brought together an absorbing collection of stereoscopic photographs of the disaster, and combined them with largely contemporary writings to produce a very attractive coffee-table book. The photographs are generally displayed two ways, in large format as an eye-viewable image, and a smaller stereoscopic version below. The second version is to be viewed through a set of glasses, included with the book, and stereoscopic view brings out an astonishing amount of detail, mightily improving on both the depth and clarity of the flat image. An introductory chapter describes the development of stereoscopy and the roles of the major promoters of the form. The author has brought together an impressive collection of images and commentary. For straight history, readers might prefer The Crack in the Edge of the World, by Simon Winchester but this is an excellent visual companion that enthusiasts either of the disaster or of the medium will want.

Three important elements effectively come together to make this beautiful book unique:
1. Rare stereo photographs of landmark structures, like City Hall and The Crocker mansion, reproduced to view with 3-D glasses that are included, let you bear witness to the actual devastation.
2. Newspaper accounts at the time and personal recollections let you hear what actually happened. Herbert Hamrol's recently shared reminiscence of when he was just three years old is touching.
3. And lastly, the backstories of universally known figures like Enrico Caruso, and locally recognized officials like the then Commander of the Presideo, General Frederick Funston, and Mayor Eugene Schmitz draw us closer to the feelings and heroic actions of those who survived.
All of us who love San Francisco will cherish this book.

I've spent hours looking at the photos in Mr. Burkhart's book. They tell a story no words could ever tell, and cover each page of the book's 220 pages. Wow!! That's a lot of photographs. I was amazed!! I, also, really appreciated the 3-D feature which allowed me to see most of the photos in greater depth. Earthquake Days is a unique and brilliantly assembled book with the added bonus of being interactive. I believe it would appeal to children as much as it would adults.

Mr. Burkhart did a first rate job of compiling the photographs and telling the story of Earthquake Days. It is a must see book!

Earthquake Days is an elegant book and a real page-turner that transports you back to 1906 with full 3-Dimension accuracy. The 3-D glasses included with the book help re-create the quake with amazing realism. Great story-telling by historian/Yale graduate David Burkhart brings richness and color to the historic quake, while hundreds of full-page photographs, 3-D images, newspaper clips, artist renditions, and maps forever change your understanding of what really happened. The book taps your emotions as you immerse yourself in the experience of April 18, 19, and 20th, 1906. There are hundreds of breathtaking images and vital material in this book that you will not find in any of the other earthquake books. A glorious book and a great buy!

This is one of the best books I've seen about the 1906 Earthquake. As a 5th generation Californian, I am impressed not only by the multitude of 3-D images of the quake, but also by the fascinating historical accounts that this book contains. Whether you are intereted in the quake itself, the fire or the stories that go with the 1906 Earthquake, this book has something for you. My 87 year old mother loves it, as does my 5 year old grandaughter. I highly reccomend this book!!!!!

Earthquake Days: The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake & Fire in 3-D is an impressive photographic spectacle about the historic San Francisco Earthquake and is quite like no other treatment of the subject. The vintage black-and-white photographs have been treated so that they appear in 3-D with the aid of the accompanying viewer! The photographs are quite vivid to the naked eye as well, and the accompanying text by California-born historian David Burkhart recounts the historical debacle captured in the tragic images. In addition to the photographs of the city's devastation, Earthquake Days includes vintage newspaper clippings, sketches, cartoons, and the like concerning the disaster. A truly unforgettable visual presentation of a sad event in American history.

This book is a gem! Having a longtime interest in the SF Quake, I look forward with great interest to new books, and recently there have been a few. This one is unique in that it offers a well written text with rare glimpses of the event through steroscopic scenes. Mr. Burkhart must have spent numerous hours hunting for these never before seen photos that capture that tragic day so perfectly. Thoroughly researched and beautifully presented, I would receommend this book to seasoned historians as well as casual readers.

This is not the book to pick up if you're interested in the 1906 earthquake. Although informative, that is not what this book is trying to achieve. The book is much more a history book about the way photographers using 3-D technology recorded the aftermath. As such, it provides us with amazing photography, and very good quality enlargements of the original photos, so that we may compare "flat" 2-D to the 3-D.

Very happy with the book and the service I received from amazon.com who I purchased it from.

A SUPER BOOK - I am proud to add to my libray of 3-D Publications. Truly an inspired work. Excellent layout and a GREAT STORY to go along with the photographs!