Review by applesodaperson - Nuclear War : A Scenario

applesodaperson 's review for:

Nuclear War : A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen

4.25

emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

This was absolutely a horror book in my opinion. It really is nonfiction, with a bit of speculative fiction in there, due to the nature of the topic, but it really did read as a horror book. There were so many horrific descriptions people and animals dying in gruesome ways from radiation and explosions and burns (the part about the zoo animals had me in tears). But the book does a good job of emphasizing how realistic this potential scenario is, even though it is scary. I also liked that it talked so much about the government processes involved with nuclear warfare, it almost felt like getting a peek behind the curtain about how the government would operate under crisis.

Another thought that I had while reading this book is just how fast this all can happen. How fast the word can literally end. I think the whole scenario the book describes takes place in under a couple hours at most. Like most of it was about the length of my commute to work. And yeah, I don’t know how anyone could stay calm or rationale in this sort of situation. I guess that is why the government prepares and plans so much for it. But I kept thinking throughout this book that I have like zero faith that our current presidency would handle this well at all. I definitely think he would just make things worse. And that is terrifying when the stakes are literally the end of the world!

Overall, I would highly recommend this book. Although it does focus a lot on America, this is an issue that could and would affect everyone worldwide, so I think it still worth reading even for readers outside the US.

Content Warnings