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hannahmay30's review
4.0
Very interesting and well written, but found it quite hard to stay focused due to the heavy subject matter. However, can't be helped to an extent when writing about Chernobyl....
aesopsdaddy's review against another edition
4.0
In the face of an epidemic of misinformation and no comprehensive epidemiological study ever being conducted on the health effects of the Chernobyl disaster, Kate Brown’s book is a marvel in historical journalism and investigative demythologisation. This work of non-fiction celebrates the brave sacrifices and whistleblowing efforts of the unsung heroes that seldom appear in traditional histories of Chernobyl. It’s a testament to the importance of learning from the lies told in times of tragedy that strikes a thoroughly contemporary chord despite the event occurring almost 40 years ago, occasionally reading like a tense espionage thriller. Though it took me a long time to read due to its density and retreading of familiar radioactive ground given its relation to my dissertation topic, Brown’s in-depth study - well-researched and not afraid to get its hands dirty - will be very helpful indeed and is worth reading for all those interested in the inevitable catastrophe that brought the Soviet behemoth down.
chelsea_not_chels's review
3.0
Unfortunately, not really a guide to the future. This is very much a civil history of the Chernobyl disaster, which was fascinating in and of itself, but doesn't seem to illustrate that any lessons were learned or offer any real advice for what civilization should do going forward. Seeing the complicity of different governments to cover up the true effects of the disaster was striking and disturbing, and of course so was the hinting that the same thing was down following the Fukoshima disaster in 2011, though Brown never really dug into that. Very interesting historical look, but not much about the future, despite the promise of the title and summary.
carlasofiaferreira's review against another edition
3.0
Meticulously researched. Definitely could have used editing for concision and clarity.
mdfn's review
4.0
To begin with, I thought that I had a pretty good amount of working knowledge about Chernobyl. This book really highlighted the fact that apparently very few people actually do see the whole picture. While we see the event as a moment in time, something to learn from that happened in a short period of time, Brown does an excellent job of showing the long term impact of this event. It was horrifying to read most of the way through - mostly due to the well-proven government (and organizational) interference. I had not thought that I was naive, but post-reading...I think I have trusted my government (or the idea of what a government does) waaay more than I should.
This is a very dense read - so much information to digest throughout. I am typically a very fast reader and this book does require some breaks occasionally to determine what is happening. There is a good amount of jargon, especially of the medical variety, though often this is explained well and repeated as needed. It is very clear that an immense amount of research went into this.
I initially thought that this might be an addition to a unit I teach about nonfiction for high school students, but I don't think that it would be a gentle introduction to nonfiction.
This is a very dense read - so much information to digest throughout. I am typically a very fast reader and this book does require some breaks occasionally to determine what is happening. There is a good amount of jargon, especially of the medical variety, though often this is explained well and repeated as needed. It is very clear that an immense amount of research went into this.
I initially thought that this might be an addition to a unit I teach about nonfiction for high school students, but I don't think that it would be a gentle introduction to nonfiction.