It's the first "hurricane history" of New Orleans
It covers all three of the city's historical eras: French (1718-1762), Spanish (1762-1800) and American (1803-present) based on primary sources
It features the first comprehensive history of the New Orleans levees from the French colonial period (including the knowledge transfer from France) to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, using French and Spanish colonial records, as well as primary sources from the American period
It combines climate, environmental, social, and economic history
It shows how long-term historical processes are linked to and relevant for the present and future
