What Stands in a Storm: Three Days in the Worst Superstorm to Hit the South's Tornado Alley

by Kim Cross, Rick Bragg (Foreword)

Immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling set you right in the middle of the horrific superstorm of April 2011, a weather event that killed 348 people.

April 27, 2011, marked the climax of a superstorm that saw a record 358 tornadoes rip through twenty-one states in three days, seven hours, and eighteen minutes. It was the deadliest day of the biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history, which saw 348 people killed, entire neighborhoods erased, and $11 billion in damage. The biggest of the tornadoes left scars across the land so wide they could be seen from space. But from the terrible destruction emerged everyday heroes, neighbors and strangers who rescued each other from hell on earth.

With powerful emotion and gripping detail, Cross weaves together the heart-wrenching stories of several characters--including three college students, a celebrity weatherman, and a team of hard-hit rescuers--to create a nail-biting chronicle in the Tornado Alley of America. No, it's not Oklahoma or Kansas; it's Alabama, where there are more tornado fatalities than anywhere in the US, where the trees and hills obscure the storms until they're bearing down upon you. For some, it's a story of survival, and for others it's the story of their last hours.

Cross's immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling sets you right in the middle of the very worst hit areas of Alabama, where thousands of ordinary people witnessed the sky falling around them. Yet from the disaster comes a redemptive message that's just as real: In times of trouble, the things that tear our world apart also reveal what holds us together.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, History, Nature, Audiobook, Survival, Biography

320 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2015

About the author

Kim Cross is a New York Times best-selling author and journalist known for meticulously reported narrative nonfiction. A full-time freelance writer, she has bylines in the New York Times, Nieman Storyboard, Outside, Bicycling, Garden & Gun, CNN.com, ESPN.com, and USA Today. Her work has been recognized in “Best of” lists by the the New York Times, the Columbia Journalism Review, The Sunday Longread, Longform, Apple News Audio, and Best American Sports Writing. She teaches Feature Writing for Harvard Extension School and lives in Idaho.

Reviews

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raindrops turned to leaves. Leaves gave way to objects.

"Mom! There's debris falling!" said a teenaged boy.

"Stop playing!" said his mother.

The boy pointed at a tree branch drifting down from the sky, featherlike. What looked like a twig grew into a limb. In a blink, it became a full-sized tree hurtling directly toward them. As it hit the ground nearby, green lightning spidered out of the clouds and seized it like a hand.

even without sharks in them, tornadoes are terrifying



this book covers the superstorm event of 2011 in which 358 tornadoes occurred over a three-day period.



the storms spread out over twenty-one states, but this book's focus is on alabama (where 252 people died) and parts of mississippi, using interviews, facebook posts, emails, and news reports to reconstruct the devastating event. the story contains accounts from survivors, the families of the deceased, meteorologists, emt workers and doctors, storm chasers, and the heartbreaking internet posts of the dead which remain online, outlasting their authors. it is both comprehensive and immediate - a genuine nail-biter - as the tornadoes approach, destroy, pause, and resume - sometimes five at a time.

i am terrified of tornadoes. which is why i read this book. i am also terrified of volcanoes and earthquakes. i am grateful to live in a region where these giant natural forces are uncommon, and it is mind-boggling to read the nearly blasé reactions expressed at the beginning of this book by individuals so accustomed to tornadoes and so used to experiencing false alarms that they barely even react to the warnings:

Smithville's tornado siren, an ear-splitting 50 feet from Patti's house, had been screaming so often this spring that she found herself sleeping through the warnings.

and

When the sirens screamed she sighed and joined her colleagues in the stairwell, stopping by the coffee pot on the way to pour another cup.

now, i completely understand that repetition dulls alarm, and that after several false warnings, a person can overcome their natural instincts of terrified awe, but not me. first hint of an alarm, and i am in my custom-made bomb shelter with my hands over my ears. true story: when i was 6 or so, there was a hurricane warning, and i overreacted because - 6 - and i spent HOURS toting all my beloved stuffed animals and toys down to the basement. that i was able to do this for hours points to how very unmonitored i was as a child, but i was very cross indeed when i was finally discovered and made to bring everything back up. "but mommy, my yooooonicorns!!" i am pretty much still like this when i think about tornadoes and such. false alarms or no, if i lived in tornado country (and i would NOT), i would be in the basement with my yoonicorns at the first peal of a car alarm. and a mobile home?? that's just hubris, man.

but the book discusses the danger of false warnings in the way they decrease that respectful fear, and explains why false alarms are so common:

In an age when we can map the human genome, gather dust from a comet hurtling through space, and engineer synthetic DNA, science cannot predict exactly when and where a tornado will form. A radar cannot "see" tornadoes. It can only detect conditions known to be present when they form, such as signs of strong rotation. And the presence of those radar features does not prove a tornado exists. The only way to confirm a tornado is for a human to lay eyes on it.

good thing THAT'S not terrifying. but it's why there are so many warnings that come to nothing. and why there is only an average 13-minute warning time.

this is a terrific book, and it's very intense. it's extensively researched, she's a very clear and vivid writer, and even her organization is excellent; a great balance of heart-pounding action and factual material. and it was smart of her to choose to relay the information about "how does a tornado form?" by structuring it around an assembly where a beloved local meteorologist addresses a group of fifth-graders, which makes the science both comprehensible and also very lively.

this is the perfect book for fans of The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea, Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster, Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History, The Children's Blizzard - any of those narrative nonfiction books about natural disasters or other survival stories featuring people much tougher than i am:

The tornado had ripped off his jeans and his shirt, had stolen his watch and his glasses. A 3-inch shard of wood pierced the tender arch of one foot, and blood was pooling beneath it. A Bic pen was impaled in the flesh of his side. He wrapped his fingers around the pen and winced as he yanked it out.

dude.

and like all these stories about communities destroyed, in the aftermath of the storms come the accounts of altruism. of the healing and hope and the endurance of the human spirit and the way in which survivors and strangers both step up to help a community in need. and it manages to not be treacly about it. much.

at any rate, it is a gripping account of an unprecedented event, and it only reinforced my fear of tornadoes. i will be in my bunker if anyone needs me.



come to my blog!

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the genres of non-fiction in which I am well versed is disaster stories. You may wonder, "Is it because you are a disaster yourself?" No, and I don't like your tone.

Disaster stories follow a very simple formula. Introduce the people you will be following (sometimes with a flash forward), then get to the disaster, then the aftermath. The trick is not to try and break from this structure. The key to a great disaster story is making the reader connect with the people caught in the wake. You don't root for the tornado. You root for the people. And unfortunately, you will inevitably have to mourn some.

Kim Cross adds one more wrinkle in her exceptional What Stands in a Storm about the tornado outbreak in the south in April of 2011. Her prose is what makes this story stand out even more. I can't count the number of books recently that do not know how to use similes, metaphors, and alliteration. They often feel forced or just plain nonsensical. Cross is the opposite. Her descriptions border on poetry and her explanation of scientific aspects are dummy proof (which I am comfortable saying since science hurts my brain).

None of this would matter, however, unless Cross brought home the human drama and loss. In that regard, I can confirm it got VERY dusty in my house while reading the final 50 pages. There is no stronger seal of approval I can give.

[Suzi Voss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me preface this review by saying I am a meteorologist and probably see this book through different eyes. April 27, 2011 is a day I will never forget. I was nearing the end of meteorology school at the time; we had been watching this severe weather setup in class and analyzing it for days. As soon as class was over on that fateful day, we all raced home to watch the storm development on our weather forecasting software. The parameters we saw were unbelievable; none of us had ever seen a convective setup like that before (and may never again in our lifetime). When long-track tornadoes began to touch down, I switched over to James Spann's live broadcast online and watched in horror as footage from these storms rolled in. I don't think I moved from the couch for a solid 6 hours and can still recall the horrific feeling in my stomach as the events unfolded.

This book documents how April 27th and the weeks after unfolded for several individuals and their families, bringing a heart-wrenching personal perspective. Some reviewers mentioned that the writing style is a little melodramatic, and I guess I can see that, but like I said I saw this through different eyes than most people and it didn't bother me - their stories needed to be told. After seeing the convective setup develop and watching the footage as these tornadoes ripped through Dixie Alley, being able to put myself inside the footage with personal accounts through this book was incredibly emotional. I rarely cry while reading a book, but I had to stop several times and grab a tissue during the second half of the book.

Also intertwined in the story is James Spann's account of the storm, as well as a bit of history on him and his family. As someone who has looked up to him for several years as a pillar in my career field, I appreciated reading his perspective.

This is a very emotional read, especially for weather enthusiasts for whom this day is etched in their minds forever.

[Bookread2day · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very emotional read. Such terror and pain and death by the most catastrophic mass-tornado attack in recorded American history. This is a heartbreaking read, I am finding I have to read and then stop and grieve for sometime for those who lost their lives through the biggest tornado out-break in history of recorded weather. The book is dedicated to the Albamians who lost their lives and to the people who face a world without them.

[Lisa B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Thoughts
Having lived in the Midwest most of my life, I am no stranger to tornado warnings. Thankfully, I have never experienced a tornado and hope I never will. Recently, it occurred to me that I have become a bit too lackadaisical with regards to heeding the tornado warnings. Not long ago, I was actually getting mad at the weather person for interrupting my TV show (Sponge Bob).

This book is a prime example of why we should all take tornado warnings seriously. People who did everything they were supposed to still lost their lives. How stupid of me to think something as simple as going to the basement is too much trouble. Not anymore.

This is an intense - educational - heartbreaking yet uplifting story. We learn about how tornados are formed and a brief history of the national weather service. We get to ride along with storm chasers. And we spend time with individuals as they ride out the tornado - some who survived and some who did not,

The author did an outstanding job of making this a very interesting story. I learned alot and I have a new respect for tornados and tornado warnings.

Many thanks to Atria Books, via Netgalley, for allowing me to read this in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Megan Edwards · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subject matter is fascinating - I'm eerily drawn to storms and tornadoes. However, the writing is like the writing for the Hallmark channel - cliched and overdone and melodramatic. But the facts and the heartbreaking stories are there, which made it a worthwhile read. I do wish there had been a better explanation of how a tornado forms. I found it fascinating how in some areas of Tornado Alley, local network meteorologists are treated like prophets. These men (why are they always men?) are household names. And they are incredibly passionate about the important work they do.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

This subject matter is rarely visited in print to the extent that it deserves. How it has changed peoples' lives and physical locations and not just in modern times. Kudos to Kim Cross for attempting this particular Superstorm and condition in 2011. However, the style of the writing was too high on melodrama and the transitions difficult to "jump" to maintain continuity in reading. Regardless, I did enjoy this book and learning about the people who suffered and who responded. Having been in 3 tornados during my life, and in one (2010)losing the entire outside and half the roof (MI)- I cannot tell you how terrifying these storms are. And unpredictable to exact movements. They skip and they kill in moments. Trees become projectiles and I can't think of lovely trees the same. Not near to my abode. Nor could I easily live in a house without a basement. You never forget the green or the sound. I don't take Tornado Warnings lightly as many do around me.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this signed, personalized book from a Goodreads giveaway about 3 years ago, maybe 4. Huge regrets for waiting so long to read it.

Wow, what a well-written book! And no, I wasn't tearing up reading about the lost loved ones and the struggle of surviving after the storms and recovering...

READ THIS BOOK! YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!

[MikaylasBookNook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sad book but wow. Such powerful story telling. Going back and talking about days leading to the event. Setting the scene and characters. It was emotional. It was hard to read at times. But what a powerful story.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

This is a non-fiction book and that is usually not my favorite genre of books. But, this book is written in the style of a novel and the reader gets to look into the lives of the victims both before and after the storms hit.

On April 27, 2011, the deadliest outbreak of tornadoes ever recorded in weather history hit the southern states. This novel focused primarily on the lives of families in Mississippi and Alabama. EF5 and EF4 tornadoes wreaked havoc for miles over small towns and large cities causing enormous damage both in lives and property. No fiction book could be written with such devastation and seem credible to readers but this book covered the real events. And that made this book so difficult to read.

Author Kim Cross does a fantastic job of bringing people's stories forward such that I found myself hoping and rooting to have them survive and be okay. Some of them did survive, many did not. I had to take breaks from reading because this is not fiction but reality for many.

An excellent coverage of the power of Mother Nature. And, if I can indulge, one of the heart-warming stories to emerge after the storms is about the small (very small) town of Phil Campbell, AL. The tornado basically wiped this small town off the map but a group of good samaritans, all named Phil Campbell and one Phyllis Campbell, showed up after the storm and volunteered to help rebuild. So not all is sorrow.

[Christina DeVane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a sad account of devastating tornadoes just a few days before my wedding! Amazing how so many could happen at the same time with such magnitude.
A lot of language used in quotations- everyone is exclaiming their fear! This story gives me a different perspective on forecasters, weather, and always taking precautions!

[༺Kiki༻ · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you liked this book, you might also enjoy:

✱ The Storm of the Century: The Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900
✱ Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History
✱ The Children's Blizzard
✱ The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of the Great American Dust Bowl
✱ Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded
✱ A Crack in the Edge of the World
✱ The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a detailed account of the 2011 superstorm, look no further. This book provides many storylines, from an abundance of weather details to the lives of the people affected by the storm.

However, if you’re like me and just think tornadoes are cool, this book probably won’t interest you that much. Tornadoes are a very visual thing, destructive yet beautiful and mesmerizing. I don’t think tornado books really work because you don’t get that visual aspect.

This book is has an obvious journalistic style. I can usually tell pretty quickly when a book is written by a journalist, as the style is very distinct. I find it’s usually categorized by a lot of weird, insignificant descriptions, as the people who were being interviewed probably said them. That doesn’t make those details interesting.

One example: the author said “the storms were pregnant with tornadoes” multiple times. What an awkward way to describe a storm lol.

My recommendation would be watching the tv show Tornado Alley. They have an episode dedicated to Tuscaloosa, but you can actually hear the stories directly from the people and see the tornado videos. Much more interesting.

[John of Canada · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that since Rick Bragg was writing the forward, and it was terrific, that this was going to be worth reading. I was right. Warning! Do not read past page 284 until you have finished the book. I did that inadvertently. I remember watching the movie Twister in Edmonton with my sisters when it first came out. When we left the theater, it was a beautiful day, but there was an enormous white cloud hovering over the city, which I found unsettling. Years later my kids and I drove up to Edmonton and arrived shortly after an F4 tornado hit part of the city.
KIm Cross is a wonderful writer. Her book made me wish I was smart enough to be a scientist. Her imagery was fabulous. The personification of the people in the book... it was as if I was on the ground and knew them. She even provided a soundtrack of sorts which you should listen to if you read the book. It's 'The House That Built Me" by Miranda Lambert. The book was probably a five hanky read. To me, a good part of an excellent book is the acknowledgements. This was a good book. Oh. What was especially comforting was how the people showed up and made sacrifices for the tornado victims. When I was in Edmonton, I was astounded at how quickly the city rallied to help. Read the book.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

When people generally think tornadoes, they think the lower Midwest, aka Tornado Alley. Yet, the largest tornado systems ever to hit the US were in "Dixie Alley" in April of 1974 and 2011. There were 362 tornadoes total in April (prior record 257), 358 on April 27th 2011. My husband and I were in Montgomery, AL for a year long military school in April of 2011, and I will never forget watching helplessly as an EF4 wiped out a large section of my hometown, Cullman, and throughout the day as many more, including 4 category EF5, caused mass destruction, hundreds of casualties, and thousands of injures. Cross gives a play by play of "2011 tornado super outbreak" combining excellent information on tornadoes (how they form, what we know scientifically, etc.), the role of meteorologists in determining conditions and warnings, interesting insight into why "Dixie Alley" is so hard to study compared to Tornado Alley, and an excellent intimate look at how that day shaped the lives of several families, local weathermen, and communities. It is beautifully written and emotionally wrenching.

[Cherie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is hard to rate a non fiction book, especially one like this, where it is not just statistics, about the weather and storms and how many died and how much money it cost the communities and states where they touched down. It is a heartbreaking story of the lives that were lost. It is also such an amazing account of how people come together to help each other when catastrophic events like those accounted in this story happen. The book also tells the story, from person to person of what was captured on cell phones, on Facebook, and on email messages as they were happening. It tells the personal experiences of people that survived and the experiences of the parents and friends and relatives of those that were lost too. Weather men, first responders from fire and rescue and the police, Doctors and Nurses at the hospitals all gave accounts. The stories of college students who helped find fellow students in the debris fields and helped dig people out of basements, looking for friends, and girlfriends, who helped parents locate their children and keep in touch with families were presented. It was hard to listen to, but I am glad I did.

I would especially like to complement the narrator of this amazing story, Tracy Brunjes. Her voice and the way she narrated the events was so filled with compassion and care. I was in tears, but her voice helped pull the good things in the story back to the front to allow me to continue listening.

[High Plains Library District · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s a certain kind of person (myself included) who gets sucked into documentaries and eyewitness video on the Weather Channel – the kind of programming where hapless meteorologists get their legs swept out from under them by giant waves, or people film the baseball-sized hail that’s pummeling their cars in the parking lot. I admit that I’m endlessly fascinated by nature’s power. Seeing a particularly massive storm brings on a potent cocktail of awe and fear, and watching these storms on the Weather Channel lets me feel the awe more than the fear. Books like What Stands in a Storm, though, they remind us why we should feel the fear.

In April, 2011 a massive superstorm caused devastation throughout the South, and did particular damage in Alabama. The storm passed over 21 states, and spawned 358 tornadoes. 348 people were killed in the storm, and entire neighborhoods were destroyed. Kim Cross walk us through the events of the storm, and we get all kinds of perspectives from her. There are interviews with local meteorologists and survivors, as well as transcripts of terrified text messages between families. It’s a close-up view of one of the most destructive storms on record, and swings from inspiring stories of communities coming together to heartrending stories of grief and loss. And to top it all off, Cross includes some weather science aimed at the layperson, so readers will walk away with a better understanding of how storms work and the controversy surrounding tornado warnings. If you like to combine your tales of peril and survival with a little learning, What Stands in a Storm is a great option.

The 2011 storm that hit Alabama was not the first to spread destruction across that state. In 1974 more than one hundred tornadoes were spawned by another superstorm, and that story is told in F5: The Devastating Tornado Outbreak of 1974.

If you’d like a more historical setting with your tales of terrifying weather, Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson is a great option. Larson has a reputation for writing informative nonfiction that reads like fiction.

If it’s the science of weather that really captures your imagination, you can learn all about Colorado’s weather in Mike Nelson’s Colorado Weather Almanac.

-Meagan

[Deborah Blanchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very emotional read and you will cry, I know that I did. It is an exquisitely written book of the devastating tornadoes that ripped through several southern states in 2011. Four E5 tornadoes all hit on April 27th, leveling complete communities. Although some parts are about the meteorological aspects of a tornado, it is in layman's terms and easy to understand. That is but a small part of this remarkable book. How does one survive the devastation of tornadoes? How do you go on: " For some things in life, there is no way around - you have to go through them. One breath, one step, one day at a time." People came together and helped others in need. Through this book, the author, Kim Cross, has created an amazing tribute to those who lost their lives, those who lost loved ones and those who survived, as well as all those people around the globe that gave aid in whatever way they could after this devastating disaster. People came together and helped others in need. This book broke my heart while reading it, however, I feel that it is a necessary book for us all to read. Hundreds lost their lives, others their homes, but in strength they move forward. Tornadoes happen a lot in the south, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't care and learn and help. " In times of trouble, the very things that seem to tear our world apart also reveal what holds us together. People help people." Absolutely riveting read, so please, read this one in honor of the people who lose everything in the blink of an eye. Thank you Kim Cross, for writing this book, so that we can all understand the magnitude of Mother Nature at her worst. I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!

[Jill Crosby · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting concept, focusing on the lives of people most affected by the tornado outbreak of April 25-27, 2011, but somewhere in the telling lost focus and became kind of jumbled.
It was difficult for me to keep all the character straight—no single person or persons was unique or identifiable; they were all “lovely,” “sweet,” “beloved,” “beautiful/handsome,” “smart,” “the gem of the family,” “active,” and “responsible.”

And a lot of print/time is spent describing the great celebrity status of legendary Alabama weatherman, James Spann. I could not for the life of me figure out WHY the forecasters received so much ink in this book about what storms do to people—in the Deep South, where basements aren’t de rigueur as they are in the Midwest, what does the weatherman really do? “Hey, y’all, it looks there’s what seems to be an EF4 in a direct line to the most populated part of town, and I’m just telling you this even though there is NO WAY you can ride this out in your closet. And if you try to drive away from it, you’ll be dead for sure. There is not one thing you can do. So say Hi to Dorothy for me, or whatever.” The meteorologists in the book all talk about “lead time,” but what good is that if all it does is give you more time to reflect on where you’re probably going to die? In an inner hallway? A bedroom closet? A bathroom? If you can’t get underground, you’re toast, or so it seems.

This book is an excellent report of the Tuscaloosa tornado of April, 2011, but loses focus of the people enduring that storm, intertwining stories and experiences without any particular plan.

[Rick · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think Kim Cross has all the materials for a great book but can't decide which direction to take it in. This could have been a great story about the human aspect of the outbreak but there are too many people spread over too far an area to make that plausible. If the story had focused more closely and immediately rather than being difficult to follow it would have been much more effective. There was also a great story shaping up about the Dixie Tornado Belt which was brand new to me and which would have been fascinating if more information had been provided. It was discussed and examples were provided but it was never really discussed in a fashion that would have made the book more compelling. Lastly, the science and storm chasing aspect could have been more interesting. Again, it was alluded to but it was never discussed in any great detail. We are told just enough to make us interested but not enough to get us engaged.

This book interests us but doesn't give us enough to engage us. You can pass on this.

[Ellen Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

EF5 stars. Full review sometime? Maybe. I don't know. I'm lazy and easily distracted.

That was incredibly intense and emotional and I don't know why I am fucking crying right now. I cried at a baby giraffe on TV yesterday, so maybe don't trust my emotional opinions right now. But yeah. This book made me feel things. I need to go hug my entire family, cry some more, and eat a grilled cheese. Or a churro or something I don't even know.

[Landpomeranze (so much to read - so little time) · Rating 3 out of 5]

[3 stars] This was just too much of a tear-jerker. During the first few chapters a load of characters were introduced. So many in fact, that it was hard for me to keep track of who was who. I had been looking forward to a more factual and objective account of the events. So all the drama just ruined the book for me. If you decide to read it be prepared for many emotions, heart-breaking descriptions and make sure you have some tissues close by.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a challenging topic to write about. Picking whose stories to delve into the details, all the while knowing the sadness and devastation, as well asthe deaths that could and could not have been prevented.

Overall I did not care for the flowery description of the meteorology, the bigger-than-life description and gushing about Span. I also did not like the choppiness, switching between all the story lines so frequently. I would have gone 2 stars, but it made me cry so I thought that earned it a star.

[Jeri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed reading this book, though it was with a heavy heart. Living in "Dixie Alley" myself I know the damage and destruction that tornadoes bring us every spring and fall. Tornadoes are a beautiful thing of nature, at a distance. It is still a mystery to scientists, not as predictable as hurricanes or floods. When a tornado is bearing down on you all you can do is hunker down and pray you are one of the lucky ones to survive. I have seen my neighbor's brick house blown apart by one and they barely made it out alive. In fact, they still drive their tornado battered car. It bears the dents and scratches from the tornado that took their home and almost their lives.

Anyway, this book recounts some of the stories from the April 2011 outbreak in Alabama. Through this book you get to know a few of their stories through loved ones and their communications. I vividly remember watching the Weather Channel and the live camera view of the tornado coming into Tuscaloosa. You saw that monster grow on tv and knew there were going to be people hurt and killed and there wasn't a darn thing anyone could do about it but pray. This book tells the stories of some of those in the path and is sort of a rememberance to those that lost their lives in that outbreak of tornadoes.

I want to thank Kim Cross and Goodreads First Reads program for allowing me to read this book and give my honest review on it. Too often when you hear the death count of a disaster on television you just hear a number, behind every number is a person and a family devastated beyond belief. Ms. Cross brought just a few of those stories to the public for us to get to know, for that I am appreciative.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember watching a tornado form on April 3rd or 4th, 1974 as a teenager. It was a scary sight. Soon after that, we drove through the other side of town to check out the damages done by all the tornadoes that day. It was horrendous. Then I heard about the destruction in Xenia, Ohio and Brandenburg, Kentucky. A friend of my parents cancelled checks were found in Xenia, Ohio. We lived in Louisville, Kentucky. That began my fear of tornadoes.

This book is about the next largest group of hurricanes in a short time, 2011 in Alabama. I guess for me, this book was like driving by a wreck, you have to stop and look or at least slow down. It was just an interesting book to me and I enjoyed reading most of it. I did skip through several pages when it was describing the meteorological aspect of how tornadoes are formed. However, I did enjoy the personal stories that were added and how people dealt with the oncoming danger before and after.

It's not my usual genre, but I did enjoy reading it.

Thank you Atria Books and Net Galley for providing me with this free e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

[Jenny Whetzel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am awestruck by this book. I am literally struck with awe. What a fantastic read! Any person who loves nature, science, weather or storm chasing would enjoy this book. Her descriptive writing holds you captive and you find yourself becoming emotionally attached to the people she chose to write about. I felt anxiety while reading this, I felt like I was actually THERE. I am very pleased that the author decided to add the history of tornadoes in this book, I was not expecting it. I am excited to see what the author will write in the future!

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kim Cross does a great job of bringing you into the lives of those impacted by the super outbreak of tornadoes April 27, 2011, mainly focusing on Alabama where the worst of the damage and deaths occurred.

I would have given 5 stars if not for 2-3 chapters getting too poetic/flowery and repetitive with the descriptions of the meteorology, storm development, etc.

The rest was a harrowing and sad account and brought me to tears. Being a meteorologist, most of us grew up loving weather, and I especially loved thunderstorms. Have witnessed a small EF-0 tornado but nothing even close to this.

Kim Cross credits NOAA, but more so the TV Meteorologists, who most of the public recognize. Wished she could have spent a little more time on the NWS offices and the Storm Prediction Centers activities.

Most of the chapters felt like reading a fiction story, and rooting for the people to survive and escape. Some do, others don't. The buildup to the tornadoes impacting Tuscaloosa was the more gripping tale, and it hurt to see the photos online of those who lost their lives.

The positive side is all the first responders, neighbors, out of towners and out of staters who joined to help search for victims, clean up and raise funds to this devastated area. It was also great to see faith presented amongst the families and their shared bond with each other after the event.

EF-4 and and EF-5 tornadoes happen, but not frequently. But when they do, you have to be prepared. Even EF-0 tornadoes can kill, so don't take warnings lightly.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kim Cross made me cry. Or rather her book did. What Stands in a Storm (Atria Books, digital galley) is subtitled "Three Days in the Worst Superstorm to Hit the South's Tornado Alley,'' but I read it in hours, gripped from the very beginning:

"3:44 p.m., Wednesday, April 27, 2011 -- Smithville, Mississippi

Patti Parker watched the dark funnel grow until it filled the whole windshield, blackening the sky. Its two-hundred-mile-per-hour winds were furious enough to blast the bark off trees, suck the nails out of a two-by-four, and peel a road right off the earth, and it was charging at sixty miles per hour toward everything she loved most in the world -- her children, her husband, their home. She was racing behind the massive storm, down the seven-mile stretch of rural highway between her and the life she knew.''

My tears came later, when after reading through part one, "The Storm,'' I found out what happened to everyone in parts two and three -- "The Aftermath'' and "The Recovery.'' By everyone I mean the people huddled in basements and bathtubs, the seasoned meteorologists who saw the storms coming, the college students crouched in stairwells, the dispatcher who stayed at her post, the motel clerk with the friendly smile, the stormchasers trying to decide to turn left or right, the passengers in the cars and the drivers of the semis beneath the highway overpasses, the staff at the threatened hospitals, the firefighters with the flattened trucks. As Rick Bragg notes in his introduction, Cross puts the human face on the drama and makes the numbers real: the 358 tornadoes that ripped through 21 states in three days, seven hours, eighteen minutes; 348 people killed, $11 billion in damage.

Now an editor-at-large at Southern Living and a freelance writer based in Birmingham, Cross is a superb reporter who cloaks the tick-tock frame with a specificity of detail and imagery. The ugly greenish sky is "the color of fear,'' a family collapses in a huddle of "elbows and tears.'' Trucks cartwheel through whipping debris and crumple like soda cans. "At the Wrangler plant, a flock of blue jeans launched into flight, flapping like denim birds.''

The response and reaction is heart-wrenching and heart-warming. Phones ring in the terrible silence. Neighbors help neighbors and strangers. Volunteers serve plate after plate of soul food. A wedding goes on without the maid of honor. A memory quilt is found because of a Facebook posting. A father with "kind, sad'' eyes sits for five days next to the slab of the apartment building that buried his college student son. A trained black German shepherd named Cinco and a honey-colored retriever mix named Chance help find the body. People from all over send clothes, supplies, cash. "Japan sent Alabama eight thousand blankets, a thank-you gift for all the help Americans had sent in the wake of the March tsunami.''

These days it seems that natural disasters strike all too frequently: an earthquake in Mexico, a tsunami in Japan, a hurricane in the South Pacific, forest fires and mudslides and tornadoes. It's possible that you might not be able to separate the Tuscaloosa tornado from the storm that struck Joplin, Missouri, in May of that year, or the one that hit Moore, Oklahoma, in May 2013. There's a forthcoming book by Holly Bailey about the Moore tornado, The Mercy of the Sky. I'm going to read that one, too.

Tornadoes scare me because they are so random and indiscriminate. What Stands in a Storm brings that home with a terrible immediacy. I was going to back into this post, begin with the years I spent in Kansas and tell you how funnel clouds still haunt my dreams. I was going to tell you about how I can look at a cloud bank like a bruise on the horizon and predict the sirens going off, about hunkering down and hoping and praying. But my experiences are puny compared to those I read about in What Stands in a Storm. What a powerful and poignant book. You might cry, too.

from On a Clear Day I Can Read Forever

[Holly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was I reading the same book everyone else was? For me, Cross's book doesn't hold a candle to Holly Bailey's Mercy of the Sky, a recent book about the May 2013 tornado in Moore, Oklahoma. Both books were published this spring and have similarities, but Cross's account of the April 2011 tornado cluster is mostly aftermath (and flashbacks), while Bailey's tale is more linearly told and resulted in a building narrative tension (that mimicked an approaching storm). Cross's narrative is scattered over the stories of many more people, while Bailey follows central figures through the week - so that by the end I felt I knew them. Bailey is also better at depicting the awesome power of the tornado itself - the sounds, smells, and terror of huddling in an elementary-school bathroom while the walls crumble around you. Cross doesn't discuss climate change theories for the increase in superstorms, while Bailey handles this as well as meteorological science and the history and future of storm forecasting. Both books have their iconic TV weathermen, and both have too much treacly sentimentality and overbaked Southern Christian religiosity (what stands in the storm? a church-window), but there wasn't enough scientific explanation in What Stands in the the Storm for me to get past that.

[Terri Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about the horrible tornadoes that took lives, broke hearts, and destroyed everything in their paths in Mississippi and Alabama in 2011. The author takes readers into the hearts and mind of those who were victims, those who survived, those who helped and supported others, families of those who lost loved ones, and even the meteorologists who covered the storm and wept for the victims. It is so personally told, you'll feel as if you know them all.