Tornadoes

School Library Journal

Gr 7 UpPresenting virtually everything lay readers would ever want to know about hurricanes and tornadoes, these books excel at explaining the science behind these dangerous weather patterns. Allaby describes how and why each of the storms is formed. While showing how a combination of conditions can lead to a deadly storm, he also points out how similar conditions can also fail to produce one. While the books are challenging, the concepts are explained in understandable terms and the author offers detailed descriptions of related topics, such as the Coriolis effect, the Bernoulli principle, the Beaufort scale for hurricanes, and the Fijita scale for tornadoes. Informative black-and-white maps, charts, photos, and diagrams enhance the presentation. While mention is made of the power of these storms and the damage they do, the texts do not dwell on sensational aspects. Instead, they focus on historic hurricanes and tornadoes, where they occurred (including Antarctica), and why they are common in specific areas. Boxed sidebars provide additional background on other meteorological and physical concepts, such as monsoons, weather fronts, the classification of clouds, and the laws of thermodynamics. Dramatic cover art will help attract readers. While those seeking the gore and destruction approach to these storms may be disappointed, many students will be pleasantly surprised by the wealth of information included.Jeffrey A. French, Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library, OH

Kirkus Reviews

This volume in the Dangerous Weather series will discourage all but the most intrepid of budding meteorologists. Small, dense type and a difficult, specialized vocabulary combine for some college-level discourse: "Diverging air, flowing away from an area of high pressure, or anticyclone, has negative relative vorticity and provided the divergence continues at a constant rate, its absolute vorticity decreases eventually to zero." A single paragraph introduces planetary vorticity, vorticity of the moving stream, relative vorticity, absolute vorticity, cyclonic motion, positive vorticity, anticyclonic, and negative vorticity. The title may act as a supplement to curriculum-planning, but it's impossible to imagine students settling into this one on their own.