This book was brilliant. I just had to read it all in one sitting. The photographs were amazing and gave off a very eerie feeling. The pictures just spoke volumes and created lots of emotions looking at them it was scary at times knowing just how many people were and still are affected by this tragedy. It was also very fascinating to read and learn about as this event happened when I was very young. I loved how it was broken into sections describing what it was like before, during, after the event and what it is like today. It was fantastic to read and learn about it all and it flowed so well. I have read a few books already on this subject. This book seemed to give the information that no other book I have read on the subject has ever covered before. I especially loved learning about the efforts to contain the reactor, how the other reactors were still used after the event and the eye watering costs both economic and environmental. If you really want to learn about this devastating disaster then look no further and read this book I definitely recommend it. I will be looking out for more books by this amazing author. So much praise goes out to the author and publishers for creating this stunning account of a very disturbing disaster.

This book was brilliant. I just had to read it all in one sitting. The photographs were amazing and gave off a very eerie feeling. The pictures just spoke volumes and created lots of emotions looking at them it was scary at times knowing just how many people were and still are affected by this tragedy. It was also very fascinating to read and learn about as this event happened when I was very young. I loved how it was broken into sections describing what it was like before, during, after the event and what it is like today. It was fantastic to read and learn about it all and it flowed so well. I have read a few books already on this subject. This book seemed to give the information that no other book I have read on the subject has ever covered before. I especially loved learning about the efforts to contain the reactor, how the other reactors were still used after the event and the eye watering costs both economic and environmental. If you really want to learn about this devastating disaster then look no further and read this book I definitely recommend it. I will be looking out for more books by this amazing author. So much praise goes out to the author and publishers for creating this stunning account of a very disturbing disaster.

“Like God, radiation was invisible but everywhere, in everything. ‘I’m afraid of the rain’ another survivor confessed. ‘That’s what Chernobyl is. I’m afraid of the snow. Of the forest.’ All Creation bore the imprint of the blast.” My thanks to Amber Books for a temporary digital review copy via NetGalley of ‘Chernobyl’ by Michael Kerrigan in exchange for an honest review. In the Introduction Michael Kerrigan states that the intention of this book is to provide an comprehensive overview of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and seeks to separate myth from reality. In essence this is a photographic history containing 180 authentic photographs with captions and linking text that places them in context. The photographs are undoubtedly powerful presenting a stark reminder of the event and its aftermath, including the massive cleanup operation that called upon hundreds of thousands of ‘liquidators’ made up of civil and military personnel. These were poignant and shocking- from images of the reactor before the accident, to the ruined reactor, the deserted city of Pripyat, and the fields of abandoned tanks, trucks, buses and helicopters deemed too contaminated to be touched. I was shocked to read that the radiation released by the Chernobyl blast was estimated to be 400 times of what was released by the Hiroshima bomb… I was struck how the photos of Pripyat seemed almost like a 20th Century Pompeii as it documented its decaying buildings including a cinema, public swimming pool, and amusement park rides - all frozen in time. Having recently seen the Chernobyl mini series I was impressed at how well it visually captured the reality of the site both before and after. Overall, a powerful account that allows the photos to tell the tragic story of April 26th 1986 when the unthinkable happened and the world was forever changed.