Hurricane Audrey: The Deadly Storm of 1957
List Price: $24.95 Our Price: $19.46 You Save: $5.49 (22%) Availability: | Usually ships in 24 hours (as of 4:59 PM CT - detail) |
Product Description
In all of recorded history, only one hurricane has taken a straight, direct, and unwavering head-on course before it struck the coastline of the United States. This Category 4 hurricane had something else for the record books, for in addition to a 13-foot storm surge topped by 10 to 20-foot waves, Hurricane Audrey had a 40-60 foot tidal wave. Few people who saw Hurricane Audrey's tidal wave hit the beach lived to tell--but those that did, never forgot it. The events surrounding 1957's Hurricane Audrey were so horrific that for over thirty years most of the survivors found it too painful to speak of their terrifying ordeal. Because of this, most of the world is unaware of Audrey's devastation. The people of Louisiana have never forgotten, however, and this Cajun author finally illuminates this little-known piece of American history for the world. This book provides factual accounts and historical details surrounding one of the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history, but it does so in a compelling narrative style that reads like a modern suspense novel instead of a documentary. Years of research and meticulous attention to detail during interviews with survivors bring each family's ordeal to light in surprising clarity. The book reveals rich untold details of the storm's history, but at a gale-force pace that makes unearthing history into something totally unexpected: a rare and dignified portrait of human survival. In June 1957, Hurricane Audrey formed deep in the Gulf of Mexico in the Bay of Campeche, 460 miles south of Cameron Parish, Louisiana. It took direct aim at the small towns along this coast, moving due north for four days. The coastal communities of southwest Louisiana were poised to evacuate, but then something went horribly wrong, resulting in a massive death toll of over five hundred people--almost two hundred of them children--one of the worst natural disasters in Louisiana history. This is an historical account, the memoirs of several families--the Griffith, Clark, Bartie, Marshall, Cagle, and Broussard clans--woven together in a seamless tale of courage. Each of the families struggled for survival in different settings. Some took refuge in their attics, others in trees or on rafts that were once floors, walls, or rooftops. Exposed to the elements, they soon realized that the hurricane was but one enemy; the creatures of the swamp were yet another. For the hundreds of storm victims who clung to anything that floated, and were swept 20 miles inland on the storm surge, many found even greater danger trying to survive in the marsh after the storm had passed.
Spotlight Customer Reviews:
Summary:
Hurricane Audrey: The Storm No one Will Ever Forget
|
Comment:
I live in Lake Charles, Louisiana. My mom was 11 when Audrey came through. I still remember the stories I was told about the horrible storm. The media tried to make the people from Cameron look like they were too stupid to get out. I am glad this book is out to explain how the storm came in that morning instead of the evening. I know that living on the gulf coast is the chance you take, but back then they just didn't have the resources we have now. Hurricanes will come and go, but anyone who went through Audrey, or anyone who has family who went through Audrey, will never forget it.
|
Summary:
Amazing Read
|
Comment:
This is a fabulous book! My husband was 10 years old and lived through Hurrican Audrey in Avoyelles Parish as the storm made it's way through the state. He has always talked about this storm.
The author puts you right into the lives of the people in Cameron Parish. It is a tribute to those families and their "will to survive". I couldn't put it down!
|
Summary:
Survival
|
Comment:
Hurricane Audrey: The Deadly Storm of 1957 This book is riveting! The author writes first person accounts of six families who survived this terrifying storm. I felt as if I knew these people as neighbors and the small community they lived in where so many lives are inter-connected. Read this book if you love being immersed in a story and removed from your every day routines.
|
Summary:
A gift of survival and sharing! Incredible!
|
Comment:
I live in the Florida Panhandle. I have evacuated my home twice in the past three years. I know the unpredictability of nature and the power to destroy. "Hurricane Audrey" took me into the hearts and minds of the courageous families that have made my life safer. My mother warned me that I would not put this book down until I had finished. I called her in tears several times as I "lived" this storm. I will always be grateful for Sybil, and Geneva, and Alice, but most of all for Cathy C. Post who has written this incredible book. As a nation, we are better prepared for tragedy through the lessons leaned in Audrey. Thank you "Ladies of the Storm" for your gift of survival and sharing. I recommend this book above any that I have read in recent years!
|
Summary:
"Ladies of the Storm" share with "one of their own"
|
Comment:
I was so overwhelmed with the incredible descriptions of events and emotions in this book that I contacted the author. I needed to know more about the "Ladies of the Storm" to whom the book is dedicated. Cathy Post experienced Audrey as a child and lost family members to the storm. Over a long period, the author built a trust with "The Ladies" who were finally willing to share their stories with "one of their own." This compelling story needed to be told to document the events, the struggles and the unwavering courage it took to survive. The essence is revealed in the line, "The really great men are always simple and good." Along with their women. This is a book to cherish and to share. It needs national recognition as it is the story of the American Spirit! And to think that almost 50 years later, Hurricane Rita would strike in the same Cameron Parish and destroy 95% of the town----again.
|
|