| America's Deadliest Twister: The Tri-State Tornado of 1925 Winner, ISHS Certificate of Excellence, 2015 Author Geoff Partlow follows the storm from town to town, introducing us to the people most affected by the tornado, including the African American population of southern Illinois. Their narratives, along with the stories of the heroes who led recovery efforts in the years following, add a hometown perspective to the account of the storm itself. In the discussion of the aftermath of the tornado, Partlow examines the lasting social and economic scars in the area, but he also looks at some of the technological firsts associated with this devastating tragedy. Partlow shows how relief efforts in the region began to change the way people throughout the nation thought about disaster relief, which led to the unified responses we are familiar with today. Geoff Partlow, a freelance writer of both fiction and non-fiction, was a resident of southern Illinois for over forty years. He now lives with his wife, Sarah, in Hilton Head, South Carolina. |