Jim Murphy's careful research puts the listener in the front seat of the Great Blizzard of 1888 - one of the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history -and provides a clear understanding of why life in the United States was forever changed afterward. Riveting performance by award-winning narrator Taylor Mali.

BLIZZARD! takes us to March 1888, when a severe winter storm froze New England and paralyzed every form of transportation. This collection of survivors' memories of the high winds and mountains of snow creates an instructive vision of life and hardship in an earlier century. Narrator Taylor Mali maintains the tense but restrained voice that an announcer would use to report a human disaster. The sense of foreboding he creates fits the worsening conditions faced by victims of the unimaginable cold that lasted for weeks. Mali treats each word with utmost importance, and the unhurried pace allows his audience to concentrate and to remember a disaster that will surely happen again. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine

 

"Vivid details, personal narratives, and interesting facts make Murphy's carefully researched nonfiction books come alive in audio format. Narrator Mali preserves a careful balance between a dignified solemnity befitting calamities that claimed the lives and property of so many and a you-are-there reportorial style that extracts every ounce of narrative tension and blazing drama. Parents will find themselves as enthralled as their children with these stellar audio productions."

 

"...this retelling based on personal accounts and news stories makes you feel like you are there. Taylor Mali provides a mesmerizing reading of this fascinating story. His steady voice holds listeners spellbound and waiting for what will happen next. Listeners young and old will learn a great deal about U.S. history and science, and how this storm changed our nation."

 

"Accounts of survivors and victims provide a captivating blend of gravity, immediacy and drama. Murphy's well-rounded information about the various circumstances that worsened the effects of the storm make the tale both more fascinating and more tragic. Mali's steady delivery is very well suited to the material; it allows listeners time to absorb this gripping history lesson."

 

Author Jim Murphy won the Newbery Honor Book Award for his book The Great Fire. Jim Murphy grew up in New Jersey and became interested in history in middle school. But he felt that most of the books he read as a kid were boring and too full of names and dates, and too empty of action. As a result, he has written over two dozen books, most dealing with American history and has won many honors for his work. See his photo and learn more about how he learned to become a writer at http://www.cbcbooks.org/html/jim_murphy.html

Blizzard! by Jim Murphy
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