Reviews
Twister: The Science of Tornadoes and the Making of a Natural Disaster Movie by Keay Davidson
ashlylynne's review against another edition
2.0
2/5 Stars
Genre: Nonfiction/Science
First Published: 1996
Source: Thrift Store
I came across this book at the thrift store for 25¢, and I had to pick it up. How could I not? The movie Twister means quite a lot to me.
This is the shorter, abridged version of The Science of Tornadoes as told by Keay Davidson. In this short novel he discusses what causes tornadoes, how they affect the midwest, especially, and fun little tidbits of how the movie makers brought these humbling storms to life using digital effects and strange tactics.
I don’t have too much to say about this book, as I felt pretty indifferent about it. It was interesting, but, as it was published 20 years ago, sorely outdated.
I was also hoping it would focus more on the making of the movie, but Keay talks mostly about tornadoes. This wouldn’t be bad if that’s what I would have been expecting from the book. Don’t get me wrong, it was still all super interesting to read about. I love nonfiction and reading about natural disasters. (That sounds weird, but I swear it’s not! I’m just fascinated by the supreme power nature holds.)
It was also interesting to read about all the developments that were happening during the time and how they affected the movie Twister. I was only 4 years old in 1996, so I didn’t know much of what was going on and how technology was changing. That was pretty neat to read about.
Still, I didn’t find that I was dying to pick this book up after each time I put it down. Once again, it’s because it was outdated and mostly scientific. It’s not because Keay’s writing was bad or boring, it’s just because I wanted to be reading a different book.
I did like having a moment while he talked about feminism and what this movie did for young girls and women who wanted to pursue careers in science and storm chasing. That’s one of the biggest influences this movie had on me as a child. Helen Hunt’s character is fantastically her own person with her own, unique flaws. I honestly wanted to be a storm chasing when I was in 5th grade because of this movie.
Of course that changed, but the important thing is that I thought of it as a possibility. There was nothing standing in my way. Because of this movie I really felt I could have done that if I wanted to. That’s why this movie is so important to me and also why I had to buy this book.
Overall, however, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this book. It was alright and interesting, but not something to particularly search out and read, unless you are really into weather…or this movie.
Review originally published on my Wordpress blog Dreaming Through Literature.
Genre: Nonfiction/Science
First Published: 1996
Source: Thrift Store
I came across this book at the thrift store for 25¢, and I had to pick it up. How could I not? The movie Twister means quite a lot to me.
This is the shorter, abridged version of The Science of Tornadoes as told by Keay Davidson. In this short novel he discusses what causes tornadoes, how they affect the midwest, especially, and fun little tidbits of how the movie makers brought these humbling storms to life using digital effects and strange tactics.
I don’t have too much to say about this book, as I felt pretty indifferent about it. It was interesting, but, as it was published 20 years ago, sorely outdated.
I was also hoping it would focus more on the making of the movie, but Keay talks mostly about tornadoes. This wouldn’t be bad if that’s what I would have been expecting from the book. Don’t get me wrong, it was still all super interesting to read about. I love nonfiction and reading about natural disasters. (That sounds weird, but I swear it’s not! I’m just fascinated by the supreme power nature holds.)
It was also interesting to read about all the developments that were happening during the time and how they affected the movie Twister. I was only 4 years old in 1996, so I didn’t know much of what was going on and how technology was changing. That was pretty neat to read about.
Still, I didn’t find that I was dying to pick this book up after each time I put it down. Once again, it’s because it was outdated and mostly scientific. It’s not because Keay’s writing was bad or boring, it’s just because I wanted to be reading a different book.
I did like having a moment while he talked about feminism and what this movie did for young girls and women who wanted to pursue careers in science and storm chasing. That’s one of the biggest influences this movie had on me as a child. Helen Hunt’s character is fantastically her own person with her own, unique flaws. I honestly wanted to be a storm chasing when I was in 5th grade because of this movie.
Of course that changed, but the important thing is that I thought of it as a possibility. There was nothing standing in my way. Because of this movie I really felt I could have done that if I wanted to. That’s why this movie is so important to me and also why I had to buy this book.
Overall, however, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this book. It was alright and interesting, but not something to particularly search out and read, unless you are really into weather…or this movie.
Review originally published on my Wordpress blog Dreaming Through Literature.
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