Peace of Mind in Earthquake Country: How to Save Your Home, Business, and Life

I was in the process of finishing my own book on the greatest earthquake in history - Valdivia, Chile - May 1960. I wanted to wrap up the discussion with some comments about the importance of earthquake engineering, structures and "anti-seismic" construction. This book is just what I needed. Thorough, without becoming overly tedious, it gives a fairly complete overview of the various facets of earthquakes and how man-made structures react to seismic waves. The book focuses on Southern California, but includes bits of information and history of other areas of the world. Black and white photos are not dressy, but serve quite well in illustrating the author's concepts.

Any individual or business residing anywhere in earthquake country, whether it be within California, on the Pacific Rim or elsewhere, needs Peace of Mind in Earthquake Country. Now in its third updated, expanded edition, this packs in details on earthquake risks, offering keys to making good preparations and decisions about managing earthquake risks. Graphs, recent photos, maps, and discussions of the latest insurance changes affecting earthquake country residents makes for an outstanding survey.

I've relied on the second edition for teaching about earthquake-safe and -unsafe construction for years. This new third edition brings the book up to date, and makes it available to order again. If one lives in California, and only wants to read 10 pages, SCEC's online "Putting Down Roots" serves. If one wants 200 clearly written and well illustrated pages, Peace of Mind is the book. Although the printing is black and white, the presentation is engaging and very accessible. The book has a sensible organization - discussing first about earthquakes, then problems with buildings, ways to build correctly for earthquakes, and finally insurance and how to prepare. There is an extensive index, appendices to show national and global hazards, and useful regional web links. For those more curious about earthquakes than engineering, I'd recommend Earthshaking Science: What We Know (and Don't Know) about Earthquakes Earthquakes, or Living With Earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest. I highly recommend this book, and especially the latest edition, and plan to use it this winter in my course.

This is an excellent book for home and business owners everywhere trying to understand the earthquake risks to their homes and businesses. It provides very clear explanations of the forces behind earthquakes, safety risks, property risks, and business risks and it explains what you can do to reduce your risks by fixing your home or buying insurance, if you even need to. The best part is that you don't need to be a scientist or an engineer to understand it. I found the official website at [...] and there was a lot of additional information there. Earthquakes are too often addressed after they happen, this book allows you to be prepared before the next one.

This book is loaded with interesting and important information. If you live here in SF especially you NEED to check it out, if you are buying a home and if you do not review this book first, Im not really sure exactly what to say. Beg, borrow, steal, or better yet buy yourself a copy of this book. It is a small price to pay for the information it imparts.