Volcano: The Search for Vesuvius

by William Hoffer

The story of a true adventure, taking the reader through the dramatic life of the most renowned volcano in history and its legacy of destruction and of its survivors who continually rebuild new cities and villages on the ruins of the old.

189 pages, Hardcover

First published April 29, 1982

About the author

William Hoffer has been spinning out international best-sellers for more than 20 years.
He collaborated with Billy Hayes to chronicle the exciting escape from a Turkish prison in Midnight Express, which was later produced into an Academy Award-winning motion picture starring Brad Davis, John Hurt and Randy Quaid.
William and his wife Marilyn worked with Betty Mahmoody to write Not Without My Daughter, the story of Betty and her daughter’s desperate and dangerous escape from Iran. The book became a stunningly successful international phenomenon, and was produced into a motion picture starring Sally Field and Alfred Molina.
William and Marilyn’s Freefall is the nail-biting thriller recounting the near-tragedy of Air Canada Flight 174 that ran out of fuel at 41,000 feet. It was produced into a motion picture starring William Devane, Shelley Hack and Mariette Hartley.
The husband-and-wife team’s latest book is Luke Rules, the adventures and misadventures of Luke Wilde, former Marine Corps sniper turned wily and often contrary private investigator who likes to play by his own rules. Luke Rules is the first in a series of Luke Wilde adventures. The new year will bring William Hoffer's 22nd Torch! A New Luke Wilde adventure.

Reviews

[mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a very readable, very well written history of Vesuvius. It is presented in alternating first-person narrative of the author's travels to Italy and adventures in Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Vesuvius, and the surrounding towns; and then narrated history of the people and places around Vesuvius, often told through the lens of an archaeologist, volcanologist, historian, or political leader. The net result is a blend of essay-like chapters that weave a tapestry of the history of the mountain and humanity's stubborn persistence in living near, and even on it's slopes. We learn a lot of history, a lot about how volcanoes work and their associations with other natural events like earthquakes, and we learn a bit about people. Mostly that we are poor judges of risk, particularly when that risk is hidden, and especially when we know where the hiding place is.

[Joseph Gendron · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this fascinating history, travelogue and geology lesson about Vesuvius and surrounding region. I learned quite a bit about Vesuvius' character and the type of event that caused the destruction of Pompei and other towns. This book was also meaningful to me because I lived in Naples for several years in the late 50's.