When the Dust Settles

Never less than reassuringly humane… She shows and tells and, vitally, cares. * Telegraph *An unlikely superhero… this gripping memoir is full of compassion. A remarkable insight into the decisions involved in disaster planning. * Sunday Times *Easthope, whether she knows it or not, is that rare thing, a genuine philosopher thinking through what she is actually doing in the mitigation of human suffering. * New Statesman *The disasters recalled here often read like short stories, each of them filled with high drama, surreal twists and mysteries to be solved. * Guardian *‘A remarkable account…This should be a dark and depressing read; that it isn’t, that it is ultimately hopeful and uplifting, is down to the utter human decency that the author represents’ * Mail on Sunday *An essential, uplifting read, brimming with humanity, humility and humour. * Sue Black *An entirely unique vision of the human experience * Irish Times *Candid, unsettling and darkly funny * Sunday Post *Poignant, funny, analytical and profoundly humane * Perspective Magazine *Dauntless and forthright * TLS *Deeply humane, occasionally unsettling, and strangely uplifting * Irish Business Post *A book of horror and hope, written with rare humanity. * John Sutherland *When the Dust Settles taught me is that all experiences are of value… Easthope shows us how perfection and imperfection are woven together. Everything is flawed. Yet there is also hope despite the flaws. * Rachel Kelly *Her sensitive and profoundly moral book explores how human beings can preserve their resilience and live with loss. * New Statesman *Rewrites your perceptions of the disasters and wars of our lifetime with vivid details and vignettes… laced with humanity and decency. A literary memento which honours the messy truth of life.’ * The Critic *An inspiring memoir. Easthope advises, supports and helps to rebuild lives. * Yorkshire Post *A riveting no-nonsense memoir that pulls back the curtains on your worst fears and shows you that someone, somewhere, will always truly care. * Jenny Colgan *Outstanding… a graphic but deeply humane account of what drew her to take on such work, and how she steels herself to tackle the worst of human scenarios. * The Bookseller *

Lucy Easthope is the UK’s leading authority on recovering from disaster. She has been an advisor for nearly every major disaster of the past two decades, including the 2004 tsunami, 9⁄11, the Salisbury poisonings, Grenfell, the Covid-19 pandemic and most recently the war in Ukraine. She challenges others to think differently about what comes next after tragic events, and how to plan for future ones. Lucy grew up in Liverpool and has a degree in law, a PhD in medicine and a Masters in risk, crisis and disaster management. She is a Professor in Practice of Risk and Hazard at the University of Durham, a Fellow in Mass Fatalities and Pandemics at the University of Bath and a Research Associate at the Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, New Zealand.