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Oliver Style, the son of a Kentish baronet, was working in Smyrna, Turkey, when in 1688 the port city was devastated by an earthquake. Thousands were killed. Style survived (though apparently seriously injured), returned to England, and wrote a descriptive, deeply personal 'Advice to a painter' poem about the event. Over the years until his death in 1703 he composed more than twenty other poems, which reflect on his life and inevitable death, and, with considerable bitterness, survey the folly, cruelty and suffering of mankind. This body of work, scarcely studied, survives in a single contemporary manuscript held in Leeds University Library. The essay discusses Style's life and family background, describes the manuscript, appraises the poems in some detail, and places Style's description of the Smyrna earthquake in the context of contemporary prose accounts. It concludes with an annotated edition of his 139-line earthquake poem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The book "Active Seismic Tomography: Theory and Applications" by Kalachand Sain and Damodara Nara provides a comprehensive guide to seismic tomography techniques. It covers topics such as seismic data types, wave propagation, numerical methods, inversion problems, subsurface parameterization, and full waveform tomography. The book also explores real-world applications in the Kerala-Konkan Basin in southern India and discusses advanced seismic processing techniques. While the book is informative and practical, it may require a strong background in seismology and computational skills to fully grasp some theoretical sections. [Extracted from the article]

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"In the Footsteps of Antonello Da Messina: The Antonelliani between Sicily and Venice" by Charlene Vella explores the artistic legacy of Antonello da Messina through the work of his nephew Antonio de Saliba. The book delves into the artistic production of the Antonelliani in Venice and Sicily, highlighting their interactions with other artists and patrons. Vella's detailed research provides valuable insights into the artistic personalities of the Antonelliani and their impact on the art world of the time. The book, based on the author's doctoral thesis, offers a comprehensive study of the Antonelliani's workshops and their contributions to early modern painting in Italy. [Extracted from the article]

In an effort to summarize what scientists know about these dangers - and what they wish they knew - author Ellen Prager embarks on a conversation with readers that walks them through the science of multiple natural hazards in accessible terms, stories, and powerful images. Chapter 2 focuses on volcanoes with an explanation of plate tectonics and a description of innovations made in volcano science through multiple modern eruption events. [Extracted from the article]

A review is presented of the book "The Great Earthquakes and Firestorms of 1906: How San Francisco Nearly Destroyed Itself," by Philip Fradkin; "San Francisco is Burning: The Untold Story of the 1906 Earthquake and Firestorm," by Dennis Smith; and "A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906," by Simon Winchester.

The article presents information about the book "The Ground Beneath Her Feet," by Salman Rushdie. "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" is Rushdie's Goodbye to Bombay Novel. And his Earthquake Novel, disclosing cracks in the composure of the landmass, fissures in the body politic, fault lines in the human character and "holes in the real" and his Martian Chronicles or Dune, intuiting the other world of dead twins, horny ghosts, snakebird gods, spells and usurpations. Rushdie likes the book too, and there's a lot more Bombay, India in The Ground Beneath Her Feet, from the Hanging Gardens to Scandal Point.

Reviews the book "The Faces of Injustice," by Judith Shklar.

The article reviews the book "The Lisbon Earthquake," by T. D. Kendrick.

A review of the book "The Enchanted Life of Valentina Mejía," by Alexandra Alessandri, is presented.