This was a fantastically well-researched book! I enjoyed the book, and the before and after look at San Francisco in the wake of the great earthquake and fire.

For those who enjoy history, this one is a great book. Davenport takes you through the events of the morning leading up to the earthquake, and we see some of this through the eyes of a police officer, who is walking his beat. There is also the history of what makes up the ground upon which many of the homes were built, and the composition of which, would not be a good long-term solution.

This thorough history chronicles San Francisco's 1906 earthquake and firestorm, one of America's greatest disasters. Meticulously drawing from survivors' accounts, the author interweaves science and history to reveal the calamity's destruction—worsened by greed and misjudgment—and the city's resilience.

This long and detailed account offers a wealth of information. The storytelling itself is rather dry, relying on the tragedy and hardship of the situation to connect to the reader's emotions.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The Longest Minute is an intimate, well-reported telling of the 1906 earthquake that destroyed San Francisco. Davenport dove deep into retelling what happened on that day more than a century ago and it is a gripping read. The deep dive pays off and you are connected to the victims, the firefighters and all those involved. Terrific story telling.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of The Longest Minute in exchange for my review.

We’ve all heard of the 1906 earthquake and subsequent fires that changed the face of San Francisco. During a visit to the city, I went on a walking tour and remember seeing melted bricks that looked like glass and being told they survived the fire. But I had no sense of the people who lived in the space between “Before” and “After.” This book gives them the chance to tell their stories.

The book starts with a brief overview of the forces that shaped San Francisco in the early days. Its gold rush origins led to a bustling city with unequal resources, insufficient infrastructure, and lax building codes.

The earthquake caught most people in bed and for some the end came quickly. However, most of the book is devoted to telling heroic stories of trying to contain the fires and the fight for survival in the week following the initial shocks.

This book is valuable because it gives modern day readers the chance to learn from those who experienced 1906 firsthand. It provides details of an unimaginable tragedy on a human scale. It also calls out the hubris, racism, and complacency that compounded the natural disaster. It makes me wonder if our society is any better prepared for such disasters over a century later.

I read an e-book version and would have given the book five stars but for the fact that I wish it had some visuals to go with the story. A map or maps, photos, etc., would have brought things into even clearer focus. Perhaps the print version will have something more. In any case, I wholeheartedly recommend reading The
Longest Minute.