Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 by Garrett M. Graff

21 reviews

milesjmoran's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.25


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oliviaja's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

I was a 6 year old in rural Canada on 9/11, and though I grew up with it’s consequences, I knew shockingly little about the actual day. This was incredibly informative and fascinating. I can’t recommend the full cast audiobook enough.

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sarahweyand's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.75

This book took a lot out of me, mentally and emotionally, but it's something I'm glad I did. It feels wrong to 1) put this is my favorites of the year because it wasn't but also 2) rate it anything lower than what I'm rating it. No matter what number rating I give, this book will stick with me for a long time, probably forever.

I was born in 1999, alive for 9/11 but not old enough to remember it, no personal connection to the tragedy but somberly informed and taught about it every year for my entire primary education. This book taught me things I didn't know and gave a much more personal account of the various events of the day. The oral history is long, and 90% of it takes place on September 11. There is slight discussion of September 12 but not of any events past that date, which I think is important to place the proper emphasis and respect on the heroes and events of the attack itself.

Everyone knows what this book will be about going into it, so you know it isn't an easy read. However, if you can stomach it, I near demand you listen to the audiobook. It's wonderfully read by a full cast of voice actors who fully do the oral history justice; I fully believe it's how this book was meant to be consumed. Some air traffic controller transcripts, phone calls, and briefings use actual historic audio, which can certainly be triggering but add so much. ***Note on this: emotional personal phone calls or other disturbing audio is not used; I definitely would not have been able to handle the inclusion of that material. Audio inclusions are done tastefully and respectfully; any anecdotes regarding personal messages or last words are paraphrased and read by voice actors.

If you can, I would add this to your list and give it a listen or read when you feel you're in the headspace to do so. Its importance and impact really can't be overstated.

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tmickey's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0


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mzjohnson's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0


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thealicejackson's review against another edition

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dark informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0


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qqjj's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense

5.0


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emmacharlotte96's review

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challenging informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.5


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maarsargo's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

4.0


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nataliebootlah's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This is one of the most difficult books I’ve ever read.

I think nearly everyone remembers exactly where and what they were doing on September 11th, 2001. The Only Plane in the Sky enhances those memories with first-hand accounts from survivors, first responders, witnesses, and other everyday people turned heroes who were at the World Trade Center and Pentagon when they were attacked. Graff uses transcripts, personal reports, news broadcasts, documents, and voicemails to recreate 9/11 minute by minute. It is a harrowing, heartbreaking piece of American history. Despite the anguish and despair, it was inspiring to see how Americans came together immediately after and the days following. 

It is also a reminder of the twenty-year war resulting in thousands of innocent lives lost on both sides. It’s humbling and vastly important to recognize how 9/11 changed our world as we knew it. 

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