Key Highlights
- Jacob Soboroff’s “Firestorm” is the first book about the Great Los Angeles Fires of 2025.
- The fires are described as a time machine, reflecting both past and future aspects of disaster in America.
- Soboroff recounts his experiences covering the fires, including personal connections and political divisions.
- He argues that these wildfires herald an “Age of Disaster” for America.
The Great Los Angeles Fires: A New Era of Disasters
In January 2026, Jacob Soboroff’s “Firestorm”: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster was released, offering a profound look into the wildfires that ravaged Southern California in early 2025. This book not only documents the events but also serves as a stark warning about the future.
A Reporter’s Notebook
Soboroff, then an NBC News national correspondent, was on the ground during some of the most harrowing days of the Palisades and subsequent Eaton wildfires. His book pulls readers inside his notebook, detailing the nearly two weeks he spent covering these devastating fires.
“Fire, it turns out, can be a remarkable time machine,” Soboroff writes. “A curious form of teleportation into the past and future all at once.” This insight captures the dual nature of the fires: they are a historical event, but also a harbinger of what’s to come.
Personal Connections and Political Divisions
Soboroff’s experiences during the fires were deeply personal. He returned to his former hometown, the Pacific Palisades, for the first time since it burned. The reconstruction efforts, backed by local government and billionaire developers, are described in detail.
Soboroff recounts a visit to the only standing structure—a New Deal-era basketball gym—where he reflects on his father’s community safety efforts.
“What’s happening? Are people still coming to the park?” he asks an employee, slipping into man-on-the-street mode. These moments of vulnerability and introspection give the book a personal touch, making it more than just a journalistic account.
Breaking News and Investigative Journalism
The book is divided into opening chapters that read like a sci-fi thriller. All-caps warnings from agencies, smoke columns, high-wind advisories, and live shots with producers and cameramen paint a vivid picture of the chaos. Soboroff’s personal interactions with loved ones and unexpected contacts, including Katie Miller, add a human element to the story.
For a moment, old divisions vanish.
But political tensions resurface as Soboroff moves on from covering immigration enforcement raids to investigative journalism about the fires’ causes. He describes it as “a much more personal book,” focusing on people and their experiences rather than politics.
A Lesson for America
Looking back, Soboroff sees a broader lesson: “What happened here is a lesson for everybody all across the country.” The fires, he argues, are part of a larger trend that will define future generations. This book serves as both a memoir and a call to action, urging readers to prepare for the inevitable disasters ahead.
As Soboroff states, “For me, it’s a much more personal book. It’s about experiencing what I came to understand as the fire of the future.” His work is not just journalism but a wake-up call for a nation facing increasing natural and man-made threats.
