“Remind me that the most fertile lands were built by the fires of volcanoes.”
Volcanoes are formed when one of the Earth’s tectonic plates slides under another. Typically, a thinner oceanic plate will move under a larger continental one, sinking into the mantle. Volcanic eruptions are caused by added injections of magma into an already full chamber and the pressure of gasses, leading to lava and pyroclastic flows being sent flying out of the vent. There are 50-60 volcanic eruptions every year, resulting in one every week. Volcanoes are the most stunning and destructive natural disasters on the planet, so why not get better acquainted with their power with the best volcano books here at What We Reading?
Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded – Simon Winchester
Kicking things off with one of the deadliest volcano eruptions in recorded history, is there a more famous natural disaster than Krakatoa? In Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, bestselling author Simon Winchester retells the story of how this single eruption triggered an unprecedented natural calamity that would lead to the deaths of 40,000 people.
Using his own perspectives from travelling the world, Winchester brings the sheer scale of the disaster to life with vivid descriptions and cutting insights, exactly how and why our understanding of volcano eruptions was forged in the smoke and fires off the coast of Java.
Island On Fire – Alexandra Witze And Jeff Kanipe
In Island on Fire, authors Alexandra Witze and Jeff Kanipe take readers inside Laki, the largest volcano in Iceland. In 1783, this volcanic fissure erupted in what remains one of the most destructive natural disasters in European history.
Documenting everything from how the ash covered the sky to how people lost their lives as far away as Egypt, Island on Fire is a valuable insight into how volcanoes work, and how catastrophic their eruptions can be.
Eruption – Steve Olson
Mount St. Helens is one of the most active volcanoes in North America, with projections anticipating future eruptions to be amongst the most destructive the continent has ever experienced.
In Eruption: The Untold Story of Mount St. Helens, Steve Olson looks back at its eruption in 1980, weaving personal tales with cutting-edge documentation on everything from how everyone was cut unawares, and how the history of volcanic study was changed forever in its wake. Featuring maps and imagery, it has been named one of 2016’s best nonfiction books by Amazon.
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The Year Without Summer – William Klingaman And Nicholas Klingaman
William and Nicholas Klingaman’s The Year Without Summer is a deep dive into the effect the eruption of a volcano in Indonesia had on life in the year 1816, and how it profoundly impacted global history. Tambora’s eruption infamously led to a year where weather patterns were severely disrupted, leading to excess rain, frost fall and snow across both North America and Europe.
Featuring compelling narratives from peasants, scientists, writers and ruling monarchs’ points of view, the authors explore how politics, the arts, economics and social structures were all changed forever in the wake of one volcano’s sudden explosion.
Tambora – Gillen D’Arcy Wood
Krakatoa might be the most famous eruption in history, but it was Tambora’s eruption in 1815 that remains the largest in recorded history. It is that eruption professor Gillen D’Arcy Wood investigates in her book, Tambora: The Eruption That Changed the World.
A great read to accompany The Year Without Summer, Tambora incorporates a range of primary sources in an effort to uncover how the history of the world was profoundly shaped in the wake of the volcano’s eruption. Featuring fascinating perspectives and recently uncovered discoveries, it is one of the most valuable guides into one of the biggest natural disasters in human history.
The Last Volcano – John Dvorak
In The Last Volcano, John Dvorak (author of Earthquake Storms) looks at humans’ age-old fascination with the destructive power of volcanic eruptions. In particular, Dvorak explores the birth of modern volcanology through the works and inspirations of Thomas Jaggar.
Devoting his life to the study of the most destructive natural disasters on the planet, Jaggar’s journey began whilst studying Mount Pelee in Martinique, which levelled the city of St. Pierre and decimated its population within two minutes. Dvorak follows the life of Jaggar and explores how his efforts in the field have shaped our understanding today.
Super Volcanoes – Robin George Andrews
Volcanologist Robin George Andrews explores the interesting balance between how volcanoes can be the most destructive and constructive forces on the planet in this utterly fascinating guide. From the death-defying escapades that go into studying these geological wonders both on Earth and beyond, Super Volcanoes takes readers from Hawaii and Tanzania, all the way to Venus and Mars.
The ultimate resource in understanding how volcanoes have the power to both create and destroy, the book features cutting-edge discoveries and lingering mysteries that continue to shape our understanding of what volcanoes are capable of producing.
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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).
