Blizzard

ANNOTATION

Presents a history, based on personal accounts and newspaper articles, of the massive snow storm that hit the Northeast in 1888, focusing on the events in New York City.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

On March 12, 1888, the skies from Virginia to Maine turned an angry gray, and snow began to fall. Long-range weather forecasts didn't exist at the time, so no one knew that a howling white monster was about to strike.

This is the riveting story of a region brought to its knees by the three days and nights of hurricane-force winds and unrelenting snow. Hundreds of trains were caught in its icy grasp, tens of thousands of workers found themselves trapped between work and home, telephone and telegraph lines went dead, and streets everywhere were choked with great waves of drifting snow. Cities and towns came to an absolute, frozen standstill.

In the kind of skillful, dramatic narrative for which Jim Murphy is so well-known, readers can experience the Great Blizzard of 1888 through the eyes and words of survivors and victims alike. They will learn about the men, women, and children who battled the storm head-on, the many problems that developed when it finally stopped, and how life in the United States was forever changed by one of the most devastating natural disasters in its history.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

With a confident and sometimes matter-of-fact tone, Mali brings listeners back in time to March 12, 1888-the day two storms converged to create an East Coast blizzard some called the Great White Hurricane. New York City and its environs were hit particularly hard (800 people in the city perished) and Murphy describes how all citizens from all walks of life in Manhattan, New Jersey and Connecticut were impacted by the devastating cold and snow. 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. Ages 9-up. (Jan.)

Children's Literature

No one saw it coming, especially since the previous day was unusually warm. The U.S. Army Signal Corps, who gathered the weather data at that time, said there would be "fair weather throughout the Atlantic States." They could not have been more wrong. The blizzard of 1888 was about to begin. The three-day storm was felt all along the East Coast. The fierce winds and heavy snowfall brought down telegraph lines, cutting communication between cities. Trains were unable to run, and it was impossible to keep the streets clear. Murphy provides the personal touch with his accounts of individuals; some survived the storm and others did not. His clear and even-handed approach to describing the details makes this a page-turner. He never sensationalizes. He concludes with the many changes made in predicting the weather and in the role of government, such as the creation of the U.S. Weather Bureau, legislation to make the government responsible for clearing the streets, and the laying of telephone and electrical wires underground. Sepia-toned photographs and drawings, captioned by the author, will captivate the reader. Murphy is as sharp here as he was in The Great Fire. 2000, Scholastic Press,

VOYA

In March of 1888, an unexpected blizzard hit the northeastern United States and hovered for three days, crippling transportation and communication. Hurricane-force winds, heavy snowfall, and dropping temperatures left thousands trapped between work and home, and hundreds of trains were stopped by snow- and ice-blocked tracks. Telephone and telegraph lines went dead, food and coal became scarce, and in New York City, a three-block trip via horse-drawn transportation soon cost fifty dollars. The blizzard had long-reaching impact; within the years that followed, an underground wiring system was enforced in New York and construction of its subway system started. Cities began taking responsibility for snow removal. Murphy, author of The Great Fire (Scholastic, 1995/VOYA, August 1996, Nonfiction Honor List 1995), uses newspaper articles, books, and archived personal accounts to reconstruct a chronology of the blizzard. He presents a variety of individual stories to personalize the event. Each person's story is brief, so the people are not very memorable, yet these accounts bring drama to the story. Detail about the social and economic conditions of the time help the reader understand how such a storm affected both urban and rural families, and drawings and photographs illustrate the extent of the devastation. Fascination with weather is not new—a Society of Blizzard Men and Blizzard Ladies was created after the storm—and this first annual Sibert Award honor book will appeal to both teens and adults interested in weather extremes and history. Index. Illus. Photos. Maps. Source Notes. Further Reading. VOYA CODES: 4Q 4P M J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses;Broad general YA appeal; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2000, Scholastic, 136p, . Ages 12 to 18. Reviewer: Julie Wilde SOURCE: VOYA, June 2001 (Vol. 24, No. 2)

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