The Great Hinckley Firestorm of 1894 - Under a Flaming Sky

Researched in great detail, this story is ... gripping, distressing, engrossing, relentlessly horrifying. It was like I couldn't look away from this awful thing, yet I could only deal with one chapter at a sitting; it was just heartbreaking. A "perfect storm" of fire conditions. And you can scarcely believe that anyone managed to survive. (The author's great-grandfather did not.) Along the way, you get an education in weather, late-1800s logging practices, fire physics, human behavior in crisis, and, unfortunately, the realities of burn wounds and death by fire.

I was unaware of the Hinckley fire but purchased the book out of curiosity. I was very impressed with the writers handling of this fire. The fact that so many people died due to the perfect storm for a firestorm is truly amazing. I found the author's insertions about how the subject of fire science was unavailable at the time of the fire and how human nature played a role in many of the deaths. The author tells a riveting and fast paced account of a little known historical happening. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in fire history or fire science. As a retired fire fighter's child I am always looking into books that allow me to get an inside look at my dad's career and educate myself on the history of my dad's former job. This book gave me a look at where we have come from in the years since Hinckley. Excellent read.

I would describe this book a docu-drama. The author dramatizes the terrible suffering of being burned alive in great detail in several places in the book. In other instances he reports personal interactions dramatizing the suffering among the victims during the fire. In several instances the author leaves the reader with the impression that no one could possibly have escaped alive in a given location, only to report later that indeed some did survive. Undoubtedly there was much suffering during the fire but I believe the author unnecessarily highlights the most horrible aspects of the fire for dramatic reasons.

I have given the book 3 stars instead of one or 2 because where the author reports what actually did happen, with no unnecessary horror story dramatization, the book is helpful in understanding what caused the fire, how it spread and the reaction of many in the vicinity of the fire and the surrounding area.

Loved is the wrong word, but I am greatly impacted by this book. After LOVING Boys in the Boat we looked for other works by this author. This is truly worth reading although parts are horrifying. As the author alludes to in the prologue, although this type of sudden terror is something we have no understanding of in our society, we have other types of sudden terror in our society today. This book illustrates how group mentality often works to our destruction, how some people are stretched to the limits of self-sacrifice to save others. This is a much faster read than Boys in the Boat, but has left me with so much to think about and certainly a book for our times.

It is often tragedy that causes progress. This is not brought out in the book, but as an example, did you know that for a traffic light to be installed an intersections a certain number of fatality accidents must occur? The book makes me wonder about those living in many other places of the world that do not have the luxury of advanced warning (like weather) that we have today.

As a result of reading this book, when we were in Costco the other day my husband decided to note where all the exits are, not just he one we had entered through. When I mentioned this to a friend she commented that we could not only save ourselves in an emergency but lead others to safety, and lessen the load on the exit most will head for.

I hope if they do a reprinting they catch the typos! I did find this book and others by the same author in the public library.

Incredible story of human loss and natures true power. This author impeccably covered this true story but included many true, heartbreaking scenarios. Lots of facts about history and technical facts that added fascination to this devastating disaster. Well written and fast read.

This book was fantastic. Anybody out there who fights fire or have any interest at all, YOU SHOULD READ THIS ONE! The author is very descriptive and was very thorough in his research. Informative, educational and written very well so its a great read. Gives first hand accounts of the devistating fire that ripped through thousands of acres and killed hundreds of people in a matter of a few hours. Very clear details of the fire behavior and weather and even clearer detailed accounts exactly as survivors describe them, along with stories of heroism and very graphic details on the horrible deaths suffered by victims. I cant get over how well written this book turned out to be. Stories like this are seldom told to effectivly capture the reality of the event, but the author of Under A Flaming sky wrote with absolute greatness and did not miss a single detail. He puts the reader nearly at the scene and leaves you emotionaly connected to the victims as well as survivors of the horrible tragedy. HIGHLY RECOMMENEDED!

This is the most wonderful true story book I have ever read and absolutely heartbreaking. It isn't available on Kindle yet so I borrowed it from the library. I would recommend everyone needs to read this.. it is now on Kindle and I downloaded it so I could read over and over.

This one of the most fascinating books I have ever read. As a matter of fact, I read it twice, since I raced through the book the first time, and did a re-read to capture all the stunning details about the fire. Brown is a writer that absolutely rivets your attention, and I just could not put the book down until I finished it late into the evening.

When my wife and I flew back to Minnesota to visit relatives last year, we just had to drive up to Hinckley so I could see their museum, the huge memorial spire that was constructed in the town cemetery, and the burial grounds of those who perished in the fire. I know it sounds weird, but the impact of the book was so profound that I had to experience the place where it occurred.

I'm telling you, this book will mesmerize you, and as you put it down after finishing it, you will have new respect and awe for the forces of nature, and compassion and sympathy for both the survivors, and those who perished in the most horrific forest fire, ever.

Most readers will not have heard of the little Minnesota town of Hinckley or of the horrific inferno that destroyed it on September 1, 1894, with a higher death toll than that of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Historically, the event was significant as perhaps the worst forest fire in American history, a "perfect fire" orchestrated by an unfortunate convergence of terrain, wind, atmospheric conditions, and a white pine forest. The result was a true "conflagration" (a moving fire storm) that in five hours overran most of a county and reached temperatures high enough to melt steel, leaving behind terrain that never again would sustain a real forest (the fire burned so hot that it consumed organic material in the soil down to a depth of ten or twelve feet, leaving a nearly sterile surface of sand and gravel).

The natural question to ask is why someone not a Minnesotan or a disaster junkie would want to read this book. There are several pressing reasons, from the lively storytelling to the especial pertinence of the Hinckley fire to modern readers who-thanks to events like United Flight 93 and Hurricane Katrina-are confronting the very real possibility of disaster striking their own lives.

"Under a Flaming Sky" has been meticulously researched to familiarize us with many of the people involved, then to give a minute-by-minute account of the disaster that enveloped them. We learn enough about the victims to care for them, then wait to see who will survive and who not, hoping for a reprieve or at least a postponement of the inevitable. In fact, wait until you find the identify of Brown's great-grandfather, who perished in the fire. If that doesn't leave a lump in your throat, you are the kind of person who is mean to puppies.

And the novel is not only a chronicle of disaster. There are heroes aplenty, from an engineer who ferrets hundreds to safety on a flaming train to a black porter who helps calm terrified white passengers to those who put personal safety second to that of family and neighbors.

In sum, this is both an entertaining and a informative read. As well as experiencing a story that unfolds like a detective novel, you will learn about forest fires and fire storms, the origins of the National Weather Service, the history of American forestation, what happens on and in the bodies of burn victims, the pathetically inadequate nature of burn treatment in the late 19th century, post-traumatic stress syndrome, and so on-all the information you need to appreciate the significance of what is unfolding, but presented economically and unobtrusively. Brown does not feel obliged to crowd his story with every nugget of information that he has turned up, a common failing of this type of writing. First and foremost he is a gripping storyteller (I read it in two sittings).

"Under a Flaming Sky" deserves comparison with "Young Men and Fire" by Norman Maclean (better known for "A River Runs Through It").

this is an amazing true story of the resilience of our forebears before we go in touch with our inner child :). Well written and captivating. I can read it a couple times a year with no lessening of inspiration. You

I picked up this book not knowing exactly what to expect, and discovered a richly told story about a late-19th-century fire in Minnesota - and it is riveting. One of the things that make this such a rewarding book to read is the pop science seamlessly woven throughout - how fire works, how the sky over a forest fire can literally explode, how people burn to death, and much more. I loved it.

The author's great-grandfather died in the fearsome fire which swept Pine County, Minnesota on Sept 1, 1894. This book does a good job of telling of that disaster, even though it is gruesome to read about what so many went through. In the Epilogue the author tells of his 2004 visit to Hinckley, and that part of the book is an effectual capstone to the account.

I started reading this- a chapter each evening. About a third of the way through, I got hooked and read straight through to the end in one sitting. I don't normally come to the store to write reviews- but this story is worth the read. I enjoyed this more than Isaac's Storm by Eric Larson, which got a lot of press a few years back. If you liked Endurance or the Johnstown Flood, you'll love this book.

Author Daniel James Brown is to be commended for his knowledge of the incident and his chronicling of it. What an emotional read! There was so much drama, so much carnage and human suffering, that I sighed sometimes as I put the book down to take a break. This author knows his subject, and he knows how to write about it to please his readers. I've never seen the monument to the fallen pioneers but I plan visit it soon. I've read books about the great Chicago fire, and the Peshtigo fire, but never have I felt the riveting force as I did in this book. Now I feel it. The dissection of a firestorm of this magnitude along with the destruction it brought, and the lack of medical knowledge at that time about burn treatment showed me what a scholar Brown is. I learned an immense amount. Thank you, Daniel James Brown, for such a glorious textbook and tribute to those who lived in Minnesota during this era.

Another excellent historical novel by Daniel Brown on a little known catastrophe. While america was focused in rhe Chicago Fire another much more terrible conflagration occurred with many more lives horribly taken. Interesting and incredibly sad story.

As a Minnesotan, I'd certainly heard of the great Hinkley fire, but I had no idea what a violent, horrendous, and destructive fire it was. Daniel James Brown paints a very vivid picture of this tragic event, with real characters and real stories. He explains in fascinating detail the conditions under which the fire took hold and how it traveled through several Minnesota communities. It's a very compelling book, well researched and thoughtfully written.

Daniel has written a harrowing account of an historical event. The writing is excellent. His grandfather was a survivor of this event and he draws from what he learned as a result. At least as importantly, some of what is told here has not been told before. The perspectives taken in the story are personal. I highly recommend this book.

Riveting read masterfully written. brings to life the terrible events of more than a century ago with fantastic research, historical details and explanatory narrative that does not bog down the flow but enhance it.