The first 1/3 of the book tells the personal story of how Sandy and her family made their escape from New Orleans the day before the storm, while also telling how Harvey and Renee Miller, a couple who lived a few miles away, chose to ride out the storm, having their neighbor's two-story home to flee to, if needed. The Miller's tale is one of horror, and I must admit that while reading the account, among others in the book, I had tears streaming down my face. In contrast, the Rosenthals seemed quite prepared and fortunate, having already booked hotel rooms in Mississippi, such that they could even spare one for their elderly neighbors. Apparently, an earlier hurricane prompted this decision and it was a wise one.
After the storm had come and gone and the levees began breaching and flooding the city, news reports started coming out blaming the Orleans Levee Board for not maintaining the levees built by the Army Corp of Engineers. Sandy and her family had moved to Lafayette, LA, because, although their home didn't actually flood, the city wasn't fit to be in for some time. It was there, while playing a tennis match, that Sandy experienced an "attack" for simply being a New Orleans transplant. It was apparent that many people thought the fault lay in those who chose to live in a city that is below sea level. Not long after that, she became determined to find out the truth of why the city flooded and thus began her years long battle for the truth.
She and her teenaged son created Levees.org as a group to bring about awareness regarding the levees and the truth of what really happened. In her book, she details how her group was targeted by certain news groups in New Orleans, as well as employees of the Army Corp, but she was not to be deterred. The book also delves into the politics behind the various accusations and finger-pointing, and just how much covering up was done. Sandy definitely did her homework for this book, as there are some 40 pages of endnotes and citations as to where she got her info, as well as a list of acronyms, of which there are many.
While the first part of the book is heartbreaking and compelling, the rest is not as exciting, but it is still an important path to the truth. I lived in South Louisiana all of my life up until a few years ago, and the horrors of Katrina are permanently burned into my memory. I wanted to read this book to find out the truth and I do recommend it to those who want to know what really happened behind the scenes at that time. Anyone familiar with Louisiana will recognize many names such as Governor Kathleen Blanco, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, Senator J. Bennett Johnston, and Attorney General Charles Foti (who was actually my old boss at the time of the hurricane), among many others. I don't know if someone not from Louisiana would get quite as much out of it, but the truth of the matter still remains, even for those who weren't personally affected by Katrina. While some parts are a bit dry, that's to be expected. It is still an interesting window into the past and anyone with an interest should check it out.
