Nuclear War: A Scenario
The INSTANT New York Times bestseller
Instant Los Angeles Times bestseller
One of NPR's Books We Love
One of Newsweek Staffers' Favorite Books of the Year
Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize
“In Nuclear War: A Scenario, Annie Jacobsen gives us a vivid picture of what could happen if our nuclear guardians fail…Terrifying.”—Wall Street Journal
There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States.
Every generation, a journalist has looked deep into the heart of the nuclear military establishment: the technologies, the safeguards, the plans, and the risks. These investigations are vital to how we understand the world we really live in—where one nuclear missile will beget one in return, and where the choreography of the world’s end requires massive decisions made on seconds’ notice with information that is only as good as the intelligence we have.
Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen’s Nuclear War: A Scenario explores this ticking-clock scenario, based on dozens of exclusive new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, have been privy to the response plans, and have been responsible for those decisions should they have needed to be made. Nuclear War: A Scenario examines the handful of minutes after a nuclear missile launch. It is essential reading, and unlike any other book in its depth and urgency.
Instant Los Angeles Times bestseller
One of NPR's Books We Love
One of Newsweek Staffers' Favorite Books of the Year
Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize
“In Nuclear War: A Scenario, Annie Jacobsen gives us a vivid picture of what could happen if our nuclear guardians fail…Terrifying.”—Wall Street Journal
There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States.
Every generation, a journalist has looked deep into the heart of the nuclear military establishment: the technologies, the safeguards, the plans, and the risks. These investigations are vital to how we understand the world we really live in—where one nuclear missile will beget one in return, and where the choreography of the world’s end requires massive decisions made on seconds’ notice with information that is only as good as the intelligence we have.
Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen’s Nuclear War: A Scenario explores this ticking-clock scenario, based on dozens of exclusive new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, have been privy to the response plans, and have been responsible for those decisions should they have needed to be made. Nuclear War: A Scenario examines the handful of minutes after a nuclear missile launch. It is essential reading, and unlike any other book in its depth and urgency.
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Community Reviews
Listened to this as an audiobook and the author was not only an awesome narrator, but the pacing of the book is sublime. Absolutely terrifying (as it should be) that we’re always theoretically on the edge of the end of the world.
Nuclear War is a chilling and eye-opening read about the aftermath of a nuclear war in the United States. This book had me shook while keeping me hooked—I finished it too quickly.
There’s honestly no way that I think that I’d be able to rate this book.
“Nuclear War: A Scenario” undoubtedly is the scariest book that I have ever read. Comprising of interviews with top sources, both within the government and military, we get an eye-opening look at what nuclear war would look like, both on the ground and within the government. It’s a horrifying read, knowing that a scenario like the one that was played out here is not far from being a reality. It’s a harrowing read, one that somehow feels like a fever dream, rather than a factual examination. Thinking of something like this occuring honestly is what scares me the most, so this book has shaken me to my core. Jacobsen does a great job at providing detailed minute-by-minute examinations of decisions, as well as their after-effects. A lot of effort was put into crafting this bleak tale, but it’s an important read for everybody, since this is something that easily could happen within our lifetimes. I ended up needing to finish over half of this book in the day, since I was beginning to become distressed and needed to have this finished. It’s a terrifying, but essential, modern read.
“Nuclear War: A Scenario” undoubtedly is the scariest book that I have ever read. Comprising of interviews with top sources, both within the government and military, we get an eye-opening look at what nuclear war would look like, both on the ground and within the government. It’s a horrifying read, knowing that a scenario like the one that was played out here is not far from being a reality. It’s a harrowing read, one that somehow feels like a fever dream, rather than a factual examination. Thinking of something like this occuring honestly is what scares me the most, so this book has shaken me to my core. Jacobsen does a great job at providing detailed minute-by-minute examinations of decisions, as well as their after-effects. A lot of effort was put into crafting this bleak tale, but it’s an important read for everybody, since this is something that easily could happen within our lifetimes. I ended up needing to finish over half of this book in the day, since I was beginning to become distressed and needed to have this finished. It’s a terrifying, but essential, modern read.
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