Relates the incredible adventures of Professor William Waterman Sherman who in 1883 sets off in a giant balloon across the Pacific, survives the volcanic eruption of Krakatoa, and is eventually picked up in the Atlantic.

The almighty explosion that destroyed the volcano island of Krakatoa was followed by an immense tsunami that killed more than thirty thousand people. The effects of the waves were felt as far away as France, and bodies were washed up in Zanzibar. Today, one hundred and twenty-five years after the volcano erupted in one of the greatest catastrophes the world has ever know, the name Krakatoa is still synonymous with disaster. In this illustrated account...

In 1883 thirteen-year-old Katrien Courtlandt is more interested in science and exploring the Javanese jungle for beetles with her native friend, than in becoming a young lady like her despised cousin Brigitta--but when Krakatoa erupts, the tsunami hits, and their families are swept away the two cousins must struggle to survive together.