“I’m happier than a tornado in a trailer park.”
Out of all the natural disasters on planet Earth, tornadoes are still some of the most breathtaking. Though they can come in all manner of shapes and sizes, the most popular form of a tornado is a violently rotating condensation column of air that makes contact with both the surface of the Earth and dense clouds. Tornadoes spin counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern.
Most commonly found in the North American continent, tornadoes generally spin at 180 kilometres per hour (110 miles per hour), though the most destructive can reach speeds of up to 480 kilometres per hour (300 mph), covering a distance of over 62 miles. Join us at What We Reading as we present the best tornado books that delve into how they formed, the biggest ones recorded and how brave meteorologists dedicate their lives to studying these incredible weather patterns.
What Stands In A Storm: Three Days In The Worst Superstorm To Hit The South’s Tornado Alley – Kim Cross
Nominated for Best Science & Technology in the Goodreads Choice Awards, Kim Cross’ What Stands in a Storm takes readers into the heart of the weather event that produced $11 billion in damages, as well as the lives of 348 people. Set across three dramatic days in April 2011, Cross’ immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling chronicle a superstorm that hit the US, producing 358 tornadoes that ripped through twenty-one states.
The scars left in the wake of the carnage could be seen from space, and thousands produced herculean efforts to ensure their neighbours were safe and provided for. Focusing on the accounts of various people in some of the worst-hit areas, it is one of the most vivid and powerful tornado books for comprehending the scale and might these natural disasters can inflict.
The Man Who Caught The Storm: The Life Of Legendary Tornado Chaser Tim Samaras – Brantley Hargrove
Storm chasing is one of the most dangerous aspects of natural science study, with those who engage in it being some of the bravest individuals on the planet. In The Man Who Caught the Storm, author Brantley Hargrove chronicles the life and times of Tim Samaras. Having never attended college in his life, Samaras chased storms with the brilliant tools he invented himself.
His bravery led to discoveries meteorologists once thought impossible to capture, though he would tragically meet his match when facing off against the largest tornado ever recorded. Capturing the triumph and tragedy of Samaras’ life, Hargrove’s thrilling debut novel beautifully details the thrill of the chase and the extremes of the natural world.
The Mercy Of The Sky: The Story Of A Tornado – Holly Bailey
One of the best tornado books set in Tornado Alley, The Mercy of the Sky is an emotionally draining but exceptionally enthralling novel by Holly Bailey. Winner of the Oklahoma Book and American Meteorological Society’s awards, Bailey combines incredible research with immense storytelling, returning to her hometown after the worst twister on record ravaged it.
Speaking to the residents of Moore, Oklahoma and detailing the damage left behind in its wake, The Mercy of the Sky is a brilliant read that explores everything we know about tornados in the natural world, as well as the incredible resilience and selfless courage demonstrated by those whose lives are impacted by them.
Into The Storm: Violent Tornadoes, Killer Hurricanes, And Death-Defying Adventures In Extreme Weather – Reed Timmer And Andrew Tilin
Reed Timmer is the star of the Discovery Channel hit series Storm Chasers. He has followed and faced down more violent tornadoes than anyone else, and his book Into the Storm curates the data and discoveries that may end up saving lives in the world of big weather. As well as acting as a deep-dive into the mindset of storm chasers, Into the Storm is also one of the best tornado books for understanding the mechanics of what makes these storms including how they are formed, as well as their connection and correlations to climate change.
Check Out The Best Volcano Books
Storm Warning: The Story Of A Killer Tornado – Nancy Mathis
Nancy Mathis presents an intense account of one of the biggest tornados in history – and the incredible people who kept it from becoming the deadliest. May 3, 1999, saw 71 tornadoes ravage one plain in Oklahoma, wrecking 11,000 homes and businesses and amassing over $1 billion in damages. One of these tornadoes was over a mile wide, becoming the biggest F5 twister to hit a metropolitan area and whose winds of 300mph were the fastest-ever recorded.
Mathis’ Storm Warning brings this incredible series of natural powers to life through meticulously investigated reporting, weaving in testimonies from the people whose lives were completely altered in their wake. Mathis also pays homage to the incredible work done by those caught in the crossfire of the storm, as well as those whose tireless work helped keep the disaster from becoming a catastrophe.
Storm Kings: The Untold History Of America’s First Tornado Chasers – Lee Sandlin
For a more historical tornado book that documents the efforts that have gone into understanding these natural disasters, Lee Sandlin’s Storm Kings is a must-read. From Benjamin Franklin’s early experiments, “the great storm debates” of the nineteenth century to contemporary living in Tornado Alley, Sandlin masterfully traces the fascination North America has had with tornadoes.
Examining how storm chasing helped foster the birth of meteorology, Storm Kings faithfully brings to life some of the most destructive storms in history. The likes of the “Tri-State tornado” of 1925 and the Peshtigo “fire tornado,” both played huge roles in shaping our understandings of tornadoes, and both are vividly recounted by Sandlin in Storm Kings. Sandlin also delves into some of the heroes of the study of tornadoes, examining how their fearless pursuits of knowledge continue to influence and inspire meteorologists today.
F5: The Devastating Tornado Outbreak Of 1974 – Mark Levine
On April 3, 1974, Ontario was rocked by forty hours of a superstorm that inflicted incredible damage on the region. This ‘super outbreak’ consisted of 148 record-breaking tornadoes through 13 states, from Michigan to Alabama.
More than 300 people would lose their lives and over 5,000 would be injured. Not only does Mark Levine’s F5 highlight the destruction of one of the biggest storms in US history, but also demonstrates how many factors need to come together to form some of the deadliest tornadoes.
America’s Deadliest Twister: The Tri-State Tornado Of 1925 – Geoff Partlow
The Tri-State tornado of 1925 remains the deadliest tornado in US history, and author Geoff Partlow follows its devastating path from town to town in America’s Deadliest Twister. Travelling through southeast Missouri, southern Illinois and southwestern Indiana along 219 miles, it generated winds of 300mph and killed 695 people.
Partlow utilises survivor interviews, newspaper archives and public records to illustrate the carnage the twister caused. However, America’s Deadliest Twister is also an incredibly informative read on educating readers of the living conditions and state of society in the 1920s and the incredible relief efforts by the locals that went into repairing the destruction.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
