In the ongoing crisis caused by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Robert R.M. Verchick’s new book, “Facing Catastrophe - Environmental Action in the Post-Katrina World” has much to offer. Through a well laid out discussion of dozens of studies of the many varied catastrophes which have occurred through out the world - from the devastating Asian Tsunami to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and of course, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Verchick’s excellent book helps to clarify why damage is frequently so extreme, and why so many lives are often lost.

With the world seemingly coming apart at the seams in recent years, with volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and even the human caused Gulf Oil Spill, to name just a few, “Facing Catastrophe..” is a great read! Verchick’s non-fiction book is an extremely well written analysis of the dozens of ‘whys’, the societal failures which occurred and exacerbated the devastation, and the laying out of clear and concise possible solutions to help minimize the devastation unleashed.

I learned much reading Robert R.M. Verchick’s non-fiction book “Facing Catastrophe”. Though I have long suspected that removing both fossil fuels and ores from the earth’s underground had to eventually effect the earth’s stability, Verchick’s fantastic book lays out the evidence. For example, early on in “Facing Catastrophe”, Verchick notes that injecting fluid into deep wells for waste disposal has caused earthquakes in both Canada and the United States, including a 5.5 earthquake near Denver.

From discussions of shoreline protection, and the growing lack thereof, as well as governmental policies created to deal with possible polluters and their sometimes negative effects, amongst the many other issues discussed, Robert R.M. Verchick’s “Facing Catastrophe - Environmental Action in the Post-Katrina World” is a MUST READ for anyone living on planet earth today!!

I received this book for free to review from the author and the GoodReads website. I am a member of Goodreads, Librarything, BookDivas and the Penguin book club. DBettenson ( )