Book Review: "Joplin 5:41"

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Published by The Kansas City Star, "Joplin 5:41" is the story of the Joplin tornado in a "coffee table"-style book.

It merges a number of stories into book form with lots of color photos. The single most innovative item in the book is a 360° "fold out" of tornado damage and time-line/geography diagram. It is a great idea but the execution is mediocre.

The writing is a little uneven in places. It is strongest when talking about the hospital and start of the 2011 school year. Its writing about the storm itself and its genesis is weak. That said, I like the book and would recommend it to those that are interested in learning more about this horrible storm.

It is very reasonably priced at $29.95 considering the number of high-resolution color photos.

I would give it 3 out of 4 stars.

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