There are two types of disaster books in my mind. The first, and much less interesting, is laser-focused on the event. The narrative revolves around the event itself and the carnage and drama around the tragedy. It is about setting things up only as far as necessary to get to the calamity.
The second, and infinitely better, type of disaster book is the one which understands the catastrophe never happens in a vacuum. There is a whole world of people and circumstances that led to a terrible cataclysm. It’s the difference between telling you about something and showing you why you should care at all.
Obviously, I wouldn’t go through all of my pretentious nonsense unless I was about to tell you how wonderful and complex Catherine Grace Katz’s Shadow Before the Flame is. Sure, for all my high rhetoric, I of course was drawn like a moth to the flame (hell yeah, pun intended) of the Hindenburg disaster. Luckily, Katz’s tendencies are far less base. Instead, she tells the story of the people on the Hindenburg, the people who would indelibly record the tragedy in real time, and the fall of Germany into some of the darkest days in human history. You’ll learn about people you have never heard of before next to people like William Shirer, who should be remembered way more than he currently is.
All of this comes with, not a warning per se, but a disclaimer. The reader needs to be ready to let the story breathe. Katz is not content to just jump to the gory details. Her narrative is about feeling something when the awful moment happens. You have to take the time to set up the story and explore the world these people live in. Why were these people even on an airship instead of an airplane? How did people feel about the gigantic swastika on the tail? Why the heck was it there in the first place? Katz is taking the reader on a journey and damn is it worth it.
(This book was provided as a review copy by Viking Books.)
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