In a 16-hour period in April 1974, nature stepped forward with its display of mayhem: an unprecedented outbreak of 148 tornadoes, covering 13 states in the heart of the country from Michigan to Mississippi. Hundreds of people were killed, thousands of homes demolished, and a billion dollars in losses sustained. Sixty-four of the tornadoes would be classified as severely violent, six belonging to the most, most deadly category: F5.
Like the best nonfiction, F5 is a brilliantly crafted page-turner that reads with the immediacy of a novel, telling a harrowing story of natural disaster against the backdrop of the turbulent 1970s. Acclaimed journalist Mark Levine follows the heart-wrenching fate of a rich cast of intertwined characters--ordinary Americans whose lives are transformed in a terrifying instant.
Well-known figures enter the story from a broader cultural scene, including Hank Aaron, on his way to challenging baseball's home run record amid racist death threats; Patty Hearst, whose image as kidnapping victim is undergoing a radical shift; Richard Nixon and George Wallace, both intent on using the storms to their political advantage; and a memorably eccentric scientist known as Mr. Tornado, who regards the "superoutbreak" as the apotheosis of his scholarly life.
Gripping and revelatory, F5 braids the story of the shattering outbreak with images of social upheaval and individual heroism in a stunning, unforgettable read.
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