Flood: Wrestling With The Mississippi [Hardcover]

Patricia Lauber (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Blending image-filled prose with straightforward historical facts and events, such as the 100,000 streams and rivers that drain into the great river like an enormous spider web, and encompassing thirty-one states and two Canadian provinces, this book examines the undeniable force of the Mississippi.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 5^-8. The subject is less catastrophic than in Lauber's Hurricanes (BKL O 1 96), but this photo-essay has the same compelling blend of science and daily news. This time there's a lot more about geology and also about engineering. The special focus on one great flood of one great river in 1993 roots the technology in the particulars of places and people. As in Lauber's Newbery Honor Book, Volcano (1986), the account of the natural disaster is followed by details of community support and repair. The design is handsome and accessible, with clear maps and diagrams and a profusion of handsome full-color photos that range from surreal views of farms under water to close-ups of families trying to salvage their possessions. Lauber points out the inevitable conflict: it is the nature of the river to flood and spread out, and it is the nature of people to try to keep it off the land where they live and work. Hazel Rochman

From Kirkus Reviews

A splendid narrative, subtitled ``Wrestling with the Mississippi,'' about a mighty river, from its formation, efforts to channel and change it, floods and other disasters, and future plans. Lauber (Hurricanes, p. 1051, etc.) tells everything through text and a selection of striking full-color photographs and maps; she recounts the floods of the 1880s, 1932, and 1993, in which 464 miles of river flooded, covering over 15 million acres of farmland and driving more than 36,000 people from their homes. Rarely has a disaster been presented in such serenely beautiful photographs. From the front jacket showing a light-colored house and red barns, window-deep in dark blue water to the penultimate scene of a great egret rising against the sun, the photographs are jewel-bright, set amidst the readable text. An engrossing look at a great river and the continuing challenge of technology and science in support of the natural environment and all its inhabitants. (photos, maps, diagrams, reproductions, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: National Geographic Society (August 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 079224141X
• ISBN-13: 978-0792241416
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 9.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,727,323 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Nonfiction, January 26, 2012

By 

gstarling - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Flood (Hardcover)

I used this in a study on the Mississippi River with elementary children. The pictures are great! Text was too difficult, but I knew that when I purchased it.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Educational and engaging!, November 2, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Flood: Wrestling With The Mississippi (Hardcover)

In yet another brilliantly written nonfiction book, Lauber twists and turns through the natural and social history of the mighty Mississippi River. From formation to channeling efforts and natural disasters to future plans, the narrative text blends scientific and real-life accounts to present all the "tributaries" of the River. The combination of full-color photographs, illstrations, and maps complements and elaborates the informative and readable text. Lauber concentrates on particular places and people affectd by the flood of 1993, anchoring the more complicated geology and more technological engineering in explicit examples to which readers can relate. Lauber, an indepth researcher, provides specific scienctific facts and descriptions, further depicting the dismal effects of flooding. The remarkable photography records the natural disasters caused by Mother Nature. Catastropic images along the Mississippi transition to photographs of solid community support, affirming readers' beliefs in human acts of kindness. Such integration of photography creates a style that engages the reader; livley writing provides a more comprehensive understanding of the man versus nature conflict. The orderly, attractive design of the text answers questions about the past and evokes new ones regarding the future of the Mississippi River. Contrasting the power of nature and the powerlessness of mankind to fully control the mighty Mississippi; this photo-essay narrative stimulates an interest for real-life science in upper elementary readers.