John Blair and the Great Hinckley Fire
Grade 1-4-John Blair, an African-American railway porter, was a hero during the 1894 disaster that killed more than 400 people living in the remote Minnesota backwoods. Here, Nobisso describes the phenomenon of a firestorm that moved so explosively that settlers escaped their woodland homes to embark on the train, thus doubling its load. Despite the unbearable heat, Blair kept comforting passengers and sprayed water on them. He finally led them off the train into the safety of a swamp. An epilogue explains how the Great Hinckley Fire gave rise to the forest-fire monitoring program in the United States and that John Blair was later recognized for his valor. The descriptive language conveys the seriousness of the situation and reads well aloud. The watercolor illustrations are mostly double-page spreads featuring lots of smoky gray and hot-orange backgrounds and impressionistic renderings of the suffering, terrified people. The format is large for group sharing and the story would tie in well with studies of Midwest settlement, forests, fires, railroads, and notable African Americans.Jean Gaffney, Dayton and Montgomery County Public Library, Miamisburg, OHCopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.