A Century of Man-Made Disasters

by Nigel Blundell

This book is a catalog of disaster - literally. Within its pages are the major man-made calamities that shocked the world throughout the twentieth century.

It was a period during which the power and scale of industrialization changed the planet, an unforeseen consequence being the creation of more human-created catastrophes than ever before experienced.

The events recorded here include the needless carnage of history's worst air disaster when two jumbo jets collided on the island of Tenerife. We recall the horrors of Aberfan, the Welsh village in which schoolchildren were buried alive. The story of the explosion aboard the Challenger space shuttle reveals how warnings that were ignored led to the deaths of seven astronauts. And we report on the failings that caused the nuclear nightmare at Chernobyl, a poisonous blot on the face of the globe.

These and the other misadventures in this book were all man-made and, it seems, just waiting to happen. A further link between these horrific events is that they were all caused by either folly or greed - or both.

But despite the tales of monstrous misfortune, many also produced heart-lifting stories of human resilience, selflessness, sacrifice and heroism.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

160 pages, Paperback

Published December 27, 2019

About the author

Nigel Blundell is a journalist who has worked in Australia, the United States and Britain. He spent 25 years in Fleet Street before becoming an author and contributor to national newspapers. He has written more than 40 books, including best-sellers on crime and royalty. He co-wrote the Top Ten exposé Fall of the House of Windsor, which first revealed the so-called ‘Squidgygate’ tape and the infidelity of both Princess Diana and Prince Charles. His other factual subjects have included military history, celebrity scandals, and ghosts and the paranormal.

Reviews

[Donna Maguire · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://donnasbookblog.wordpress.com/...

I thought that this book was excellent!

I read the book spread over two evenings and I found it to be quite addictive. I am a massive fan of social history and this book really showed the human element and the disastrous impact these events had on human life as well as also confirming what went wrong to cause the issues in the first place.

The writing style was perfect and I really enjoyed the length of the chapters. They were punchy and full of detail. The images that are added to the book were great and they really brought what happened to life.

I knew about some of the man-made disasters mentioned such as the sinking of the Titanic and the fate of the Challenger space shuttle but an equal amount of them were new to me. These really are tragic and some were very harrowing.

It is 5 stars from me for this book, I have already recommended the book to both my mum and my husband and will be recommending it to others too – very highly recommended!!

[Wednesday · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best books on the subject I have read. Lots of events covered and related in a clear and concise manner. You learn the truth about what really happened without too much extraneous information. 4-5 pages devoted to each disaster with plenty of photos where available. I learned a lot and have been encouraged to do more research on several of the incidents.

[Ione DeOllos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent collection of the extreme man-made disasters of the 1900s. The information is great and the photos are selected with a great deal of care in order to show the extent of the disaster without being ghoulish.

[Rosemarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author pairs strong writing with perfectly chosen images to briefly, yet comprehensively tell the stories of 15 different disasters over the 20th century.

[Mellanie Gould · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not a history person at all but the way this was written really kept my attention that I couldn't put it down.

[Heather Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Century of Man-Made Disasters is a fascinating and interesting book. I could not put it down. Well written and unique.

[MR MICHAEL A FRANCIS · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incompetence

Mankind is totally incompetence in the air and on the sea. Will robots take over to fly and sail.. incompetence