Earthquakes

Children's Literature

Information about "Natural Disasters" will attract young and reluctant readers to this series. In this title, the introduction begins with one of the most famous earthquakes—Lisbon in 1755, which killed more than 60,000 people and was the largest known earthquake in human history. There is a good description of what causes earthquakes and an introduction to the seismograph, the Richter scale, Mercalli scale, and the work of seismologists. While not an exact science, predictions have improved. Small inset boxes offer interesting tidbits, such as the fact that there are earthquakes on the moon and they are called moonquakes. A list of earthquake do's and don'ts conclude the text. A twopage full color world map shows the location of major volcanoes. There is a glossary and short reading list, web sites and index. 2000, Children's Press, Ages 8 up, $19.00. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot