A Crack in the Edge of the World

America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906

By: Simon Winchester

Narrated by: Simon Winchester

Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

The international best-selling author of The Professor and the Madman and Krakatoa vividly brings to life the 1906

San Francisco Earthquake that leveled a city symbolic of America's relentless western expansion. Simon Winchester has also fashioned an enthralling and informative informative look at the tumultuous subterranean world that produces earthquakes, the planet's most sudden and destructive force.

In the early morning hours of April 18, 1906, San Francisco and a string of towns to its north-northwest and the south-southeast were overcome by an enormous shaking that was compounded by the violent shocks of an earthquake, registering 8.25 on the Richter scale. The quake resulted from a rupture in a part of the San Andreas fault, which lies underneath the earth's surface along the northern coast of California. Lasting little more than a minute, the earthquake wrecked 490 blocks, toppled a total of 25,000 buildings, broke open gas mains, cut off electric power lines throughout the Bay area, and effectively destroyed the gold rush capital that had stood there for a half century.

Perhaps more significant than the tremors and rumbling, which affected a swatch of California more than 200 miles long, were the fires that took over the city for three days, leaving chaos and horror in its wake. The human tragedy included the deaths of upwards of 700 people, with more than 250,000 left homeless. It was perhaps the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States.Simon Winchester brings his inimitable storytelling abilities - as well as his unique understanding of geology - to this extraordinary event, exploring not only what happened in northern California in 1906 but what we have learned since about the geological underpinnings that caused the earthquake in the first place. But his achievement is even greater: he positions the quake's significance along the earth's geological timeline and shows the effect it had on the rest of 20th-century California and American history.

A Crack in the Edge of the World is the definitive account of the San Francisco earthquake. It is also a fascinating exploration of a legendary event that changed the way we look at the planet on which we live.

©2005 Simon Winchester (P)2005 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

• 2005 Audie Award Nominee, Nonfiction (Unabridged)

"In this brawny page-turner, best-selling writer Winchester (Krakatoa, The Professor and the Madman) has crafted a magnificent testament to the power of planet Earth and the efforts of humankind to understand her." (Publishers Weekly)

Slow start, great finish

Having already listened to Winchester's Krakatoa, I was a bit disappointed to discover that the first half of this book covers much of the same ground, or rather background, in relating the history of geology and the development of the theory of plate tectonics. Indeed, the history given in A Crack at the Edge of the World is more extensive than in the earlier work. It is interesting stuff, especially if your interests in history include the history of science (and quite recent history at that), but I found myself thinking often during the first several hours, "When are we getting to the San Francisco Earthquake?" This feeling is caused in no small part by the fact that Winchester's introduction, telling the story of four "first person" experience of the first moments of the great quake, really whets the appetite.

When he finally gets to the quake and its aftermath, however, the story really begins to move. I've visited San Francisco a number of times, including twice in the last two years, but really had no clear idea of the extent of the earthquake, the damage it did, and the massive response of government and the private sector to rebuild the city. That last point is worthy of note, and this book (or at least the latter part of it) should be required reading for all the public officials, local, state, and federal, who botched the response to Hurricane Katrina.

I've rated the book only 3 stars (I'd give 3.5 if the system would let me), because I do believe the "history of geology" section is a bit too long and too technical at times. But the second half of the book is a solid five star effort.

Another great book from a premier pop historian

What made the experience of listening to A Crack in the Edge of the World the most enjoyable?

Winchester's tendency to focus on the human element while avoiding getting bogged down in triviality is one of his most admirable traits as a writer.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Crack in the Edge of the World?

The tale of Enrico Caruso's variety of experiences on the day of the Earthquake is memorably funny

Which character – as performed by Simon Winchester – was your favorite?

Enrico Caruso stands out as the funniest of the bunch, though thankfully, there isn't a lot of "character" voicing.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Some Cities Live Dangerously!

Any additional comments?

A nice western companion to Winchester's Krakatoa, though I still slightly prefer that book.

A slice of San Francisco history

Very interesting book on the history of Frisco, as it relates to the 1906 earthquake. Being a California resident I was surprised how much I didn't know about this event and what happened before, during, and after. A little deep scientifically in the middle of the book for a non-scientist, but informative and pertinent to the topic so I learned much about geology I didn't know. Good read as always from Winchester, and well researched as always.

This book ROCKED!

I truly enjoyed this great piece of California and world geological history. Extremely well researched, well presented and researched. If you have every been through a California earthquake like I have (Loma Prieta, 1989) and watched your chimney come down, and 2 feet of water shoot out of your pool, your refrigerator bounce to the center of your kitchen, and all of your good california wine come crashing to the floor then this book will be a great listen!!!!

Benchmark narrative, benchmark reader

Winchester's books are always fascinating, and his droll reading always enchants me. Here he captures the many facets of geology, social development, economics, geography, population, etc., that bring a locale to life.

I live in Hawaii, amidst earthquakes and volcanoes, and he intimates the mystery and attachment to the core of a region that can keep people living on the edge. His narrative is also reminiscent of our local "talk-story," which is casual and rambling, can encompass several different tales at once, digresses and focuses, and then wham: there's the point, just when you were beginning to think there wasn't one. It's so much friendlier and illuminating than a diesel-driven, one-lane story.

Such a wonderful story!

Interwoven in this tale of geological happenings are marvelous smatterings of historical happenings and people of profound importance in the history of the U.S. The fact that the author, himself, reads the story is just icing on the cake, but his voice carries the ring of authority and lends itself elegantly to the narrative. After all, who better to read it than its author? I have listened to this book three times and am not yet tired of all its little pearls. EXCELLENT book!

Lots of earthquake information, but...

If you are looking for a book about the San Francisco earthquake, read chapter 10. If you are interested in earthquakes, eclectic information about quakes, and a story that jumps like a conversation, this is it. It is an interesting book with information on seismographs, beliefs about the causes of earthquakes by various groups (before modern understanding of quakes), and how at least one religion got its start because of the San Francisco quake.

good but not as good as other Winchester books

I found this less engaging than other books by Simon Winchester. The first two chapters were difficult to get through as they wandered far afield from the 1906 earthquake. I enjoy the science and the history and the political / religious ramifications that Winchester observes I just found this book less coherent than the map that changed the world or Krakatoa.

Wonferful Account of Such a Devastating Event

Simon Winchester is one of my favorite authors, and he doesn't disappoint with this book. His writing and narration bring this terrifying event to full life for the listener/reader, and the history and background information he provides helps to understand the hows and whys of this earthquake and fire as it unfolded for the people of the Bay Area. I recently visited San Francisco for the first time, and having a background in geology and emergency management, I was so very curious about the 1906 event. I listened to this book twice before leaving, and then found myself locating areas described in the book while there. It made for a fascinating trip.

Eriadite and fascinatimg

Broad based, scientifically and historically accurate. A great read. Presentation is compelling. I wish Audible would find a way to make the illustrations available. I bought the hard bound for the illustrations. I would make this a general request of this as a goal for audible to achieve for books of this non fiction genre.