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Chernobyl 01: 23:40: The Incredible True Story of the World's Worst Nuclear Disaster
Chernobyl 01: 23:40: The Incredible True Story of the World's Worst Nuclear Disaster | Andrew Leatherbarrow
At 01:23:40 on April 26th 1986, Alexander Akimov pressed the emergency shutdown button at Chernobyl's fourth nuclear reactor. It was an act that forced the permanent evacuation of a city, killed thousands and crippled the Soviet Union. The event spawned decades of conflicting, exaggerated and inaccurate stories. This book, the result of five years of research, presents an accessible but comprehensive account of what really happened. From the desperate fight to prevent a burning reactor core from irradiating eastern Europe, to the self-sacrifice of the heroic men who entered fields of radiation so strong that machines wouldn't work, to the surprising truth about the legendary 'Chernobyl divers', all the way through to the USSR's final show-trial. The historical narrative is interwoven with a story of the author's own spontaneous journey to Ukraine's still-abandoned city of Pripyat and the wider Chernobyl Zone. Complete with over 45 pages of photographs of modern-day Pripyat and technical diagrams of the power station, Chernobyl 01:23:40 is a fascinating new account of the world's worst nuclear disaster.
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Victoriahoperose
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Pickpick

This was very informative. A bit dry but not bad. I thought it had some great information and the research was definitely well done. I definitely want to read more on this topic!

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britt_brooke
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Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️ This was pretty dry, and as someone who knew very little of the disaster‘s details, I also found it fairly uninteresting. I do feel bad about that. I‘m not totally insensitive. But I think reading the wiki page probably would‘ve quenched my fleeting curiosity.

vivastory I have this one on my shelves, it's supposed to be one of the best about it & it's fairly short 5y
britt_brooke @vivastory That one sounds much more interesting - thanks! 5y
teainthelibrary You might like Midnight in Chernobyl! It reads more like a thriller but doesn‘t skip out on all the important information. Sooo good 5y
See All 6 Comments
MrT I agree Midnight....is a great read. Thriller like. One of my picks from last year 5y
britt_brooke @MrT High praises! #stacked 5y
85 likes6 comments
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mbreichert19
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Pickpick

Fascinating book! The audiobook is a quick and easy listen (via Libby). Definitely well researched. The author is transparent about not being a writer, so I new what I was getting into. Overall definitely recommend!

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Connster
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This was an interesting mix of the history of the Chernobyl disaster, the author‘s visit to the abandoned site and prior/previous nuclear disasters. A good read that shows the author‘s passion for the subject and some great information, particularly as it was written without the intention of publication.

47 likes1 stack add
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Connster
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I like the author‘s approach so far. It‘s a retelling of the events of Chernobyl interspersed with his recollections of visiting the abandoned site on a ‘dark tourism‘ style trip. This approach is interesting; I feel like I identify with his writing as I felt a similar thing when I visited Auschwitz. When you‘ve read so much about a place, the magnitude of everything you‘ve seen/read/heard/watched happening ‘here‘ is challenging to comprehend.

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blairbear90

I have been reading so much Sci-Fi and Fantasy lately - and while they are probably my favorite genres - I wish to learn something.

Picked this up almost a year ago and intended it as a "book club" style read with my sister.

We never do get around to those. ?

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8little_paws
Mehso-so

Interesting, easy to follow look at the disaster, but he intersperses his personal story of visiting the site which just feels like filler and is really uninsightful.

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NatalieR
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Pickpick

This is a great book that explains how the Chernobyl nuclear disaster happened. Even though the explanation was as basic as possible, I had some trouble staying engaged. All my fault as I‘m not good with science. I really enjoyed hearing about his trip to Pripyat.

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Kathrin
Pickpick

The author made his person obsession with this tragedy the object of his first book and accomplished in my opinion is goal of a very objective view on the accident itself and the weeks and months that followed. What I also very much liked, that he was able to share his impressions of Chernobyl decades after the catastrophe which he was able to gather on a photo safari type trip.