 First UK edition | |
| Author | Simon Winchester |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
Publication date | 2003 |
| Pages | 432 |
| ISBN | 0-141-00517-3 |
Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded is a 2003 book by Simon Winchester covering the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa.
Summary
Winchester examines the annihilation in 1883 of the volcano-island of Krakatoa, which was followed by an immense tsunami that killed nearly forty thousand people. Effects of the immense waves were felt as far away as France, and the sound of the island's destruction—per Winchester—could be heard as far away as Australia and India.[1]
Critical reception
In The New York Times, critic Janet Maslin called Krakatoa "a trove of wonderfully arcane information." Maslin added, "The author has been able to attach so many tentacles to a single event – the spectacular and catastrophic explosion of the title volcano – that there seems to be nowhere he can't go."[2] The book was a New York Times bestseller after its initial release.[3]
References
- ↑ Winchester, Simon, Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, New York: Harper Collins, 2003. Introduction.
- ↑ Janet Maslin, "A Voyage to Krakatoa, by Way of Everywhere," The New York Times, April 25, 2003.
- ↑ The New York Times, "Hardcover Nonfiction," June 29, 2003.
External links
- Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883; accessed October 31, 2013
- Presentation by Winchester on Krakatoa, April 10, 2003, C-SPAN