Rising Tide : The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America

Rating:
Summary: truly extraordinary
Review: I got onto this book because the Nov 2004 GQ cited it as #2 on a list of the 9 pieces of writing you need to read to understand America. #3 was Martin Luther King's letter from the Birmingham jail; #4 was Lincoln's second inaugural address. I doubt that any secondary souurce can rank with such calls to action made by people as important as King and Lincoln. Nonetheless, Rising Tide surely is one of the very best history books-- or books of any kind, fiction or nonfiction-- I have ever read. Subsequently I read the author's newest book "The Great Influenza," about the 1918 influenza epidemic That's very different, in some ways even better-- at its best it's absolutely brilliant-- in others not quite as good. But this writer has something special.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful book
Review: This is really several fine books in one, telling the story of two rampant egoists of the 19th century abd their quarrel over the control of the Mississsippi, the story of the Percy family and the Mississippi delta, the flood of 1927, the rescue effort, the betrayal of the blacks, the "rescue" of New Orleans at the expense of its neighbors, the impact on our politics and on the career of Herbert Hoover. This is a kind of history that is seldom written, telling of a period usually glossed over as the jazz age.

Rating:
Summary: Both Artful and Accessible
Review: Barry tells a wonderful tale, and is particularly adept at describing both the Mississippi River -- which, in Barry's hands, seems like a living creature -- and the main characters of the story. There are points in the book at which we're led down a path for no apparent reason, but really that's a niggling criticism. Barry's written a wonderful book, one of the best works of historical non-fiction that I've read.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Read!
Review: "Rising Tide" is a wonderful book and a facinating read!!! The author covers a history or flood control on the Mississippi, which might sound dull but is not, as well as some of the very important characters who shaped the history of this very important river in our history. His story of the Percy family and the powers of New Orleans is equally interesting. The events and stories that lead up to the great event are as interesting as the Great Flood of 1927 itself. This is one of those books that is near impossible to put down!!