Overview

On February 24, 2022, the first day of Russia’s all-out attack on Ukraine, armored vehicles approached the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in northern Ukraine. Russian occupation of the plant, which would last thirty-five days, had begun. Only the dedication and resolve of Ukrainian personnel, who were held hostage and worked shifts for weeks instead of days, spared the world a new Chernobyl accident. They had to make life-or-death decisions on cooperation or resistance, balancing loyalty to their families, their homeland, and innocent civilians in Ukraine and beyond who would suffer the consequences of a nuclear accident should it occur. The choices they made helped to save the world from another Chernobyl disaster. Meanwhile, a much more dangerous situation developed at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, the largest such facility in Europe. Following an attack there in March 2022, the Russian military remains in control, and Ukrainian intelligence warns of the potential for nuclear terrorism. We must face up to a new reality: there has already been warfare at two nuclear sites, and others are vulnerable. In a book that reads like a thriller, Serhii Plokhy, a leading historian of the Cold War and Ukrainian history, joins the stories of the Russo-Ukrainian War and the Chernobyl nuclear disaster to sound the alarm about the dangers of nuclear sites in a time of heightened conflict. There are 440 such sites around the globe today, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine will not be the last war in human history. The story of the men and women of Chornobyl is more than recent history: it is also a glimpse into the not-so-distant future.

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9781324079415

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Reviews

"""Plokhy brilliantly, crisply chronicles what happened next…when the Russian army moved on from Chernobyl to seize the functioning power station at Zaporizhia."" -- Roger Boyd - The [London] Times ""A timely study of how nuclear power plants and the unpredictability of war make for a frightening cocktail.... Plokhy manages to cut through the fog of Russian disinformation to keep the complex story straight, and interviews with key figures on the Ukrainian side add a personal dimension.... Plokhy capably chronicles a disturbing tale, underlining how close the world came to another nuclear catastrophe."" -- Kirkus Reviews ""Chernobyl Roulette is a fast-paced, illuminating narrative of the incredible heroism and courage shown by the personnel of Ukrainian nuclear facilities that were attacked by Russian forces, and of the stupefying recklessness with which the Russian military pushed the world to the brink of a nuclear disaster. A must read."" -- Yaroslav Trofimov, author of Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine’s War of Independence ""A terrifying blow-by-blow account of what could have been the most disastrous postscript to the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. Plokhy’s exacting, precise, and ultimately humane account is an act of global public service. This is a necessary book—and I can think of no writer better qualified to write it."" -- Cal Flyn, author of Islands of Abandonment: Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape"

"""A timely study of how nuclear power plants and the unpredictability of war make for a frightening cocktail.... Plokhy manages to cut through the fog of Russian disinformation to keep the complex story straight, and interviews with key figures on the Ukrainian side add a personal dimension.... Plokhy capably chronicles a disturbing tale, underlining how close the world came to another nuclear catastrophe."" -- Kirkus Reviews ""Chernobyl Roulette is a fast-paced, illuminating narrative of the incredible heroism and courage shown by the personnel of Ukrainian nuclear facilities that were attacked by Russian forces, and of the stupefying recklessness with which the Russian military pushed the world to the brink of a nuclear disaster. A must read."" -- Yaroslav Trofimov, author of Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine’s War of Independence ""A terrifying blow-by-blow account of what could have been the most disastrous postscript to the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. Plokhy’s exacting, precise, and ultimately humane account is an act of global public service. This is a necessary book—and I can think of no writer better qualified to write it."" -- Cal Flyn, author of Islands of Abandonment: Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape"

"""A timely study of how nuclear power plants and the unpredictability of war make for a frightening cocktail.... Plokhy manages to cut through the fog of Russian disinformation to keep the complex story straight, and interviews with key figures on the Ukrainian side add a personal dimension.... Plokhy capably chronicles a disturbing tale, underlining how close the world came to another nuclear catastrophe."" -- Kirkus Reviews"

""Plokhy brilliantly, crisply chronicles what happened next…when the Russian army moved on from Chernobyl to seize the functioning power station at Zaporizhia."" -- Roger Boyd - The [London] Times ""A timely study of how nuclear power plants and the unpredictability of war make for a frightening cocktail.... Plokhy manages to cut through the fog of Russian disinformation to keep the complex story straight, and interviews with key figures on the Ukrainian side add a personal dimension.... Plokhy capably chronicles a disturbing tale, underlining how close the world came to another nuclear catastrophe."" -- Kirkus Reviews ""Chernobyl Roulette is a fast-paced, illuminating narrative of the incredible heroism and courage shown by the personnel of Ukrainian nuclear facilities that were attacked by Russian forces, and of the stupefying recklessness with which the Russian military pushed the world to the brink of a nuclear disaster. A must read."" -- Yaroslav Trofimov, author of Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine’s War of Independence ""A terrifying blow-by-blow account of what could have been the most disastrous postscript to the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. Plokhy’s exacting, precise, and ultimately humane account is an act of global public service. This is a necessary book—and I can think of no writer better qualified to write it."" -- Cal Flyn, author of Islands of Abandonment: Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape

""A gripping account of the extraordinary events inside the [Chernobyl nuclear power plant station in February 2022]… A tale of bravery and selflessness."" -- Luke Harding - The Guardian ""Plokhy brilliantly, crisply chronicles what happened next…when the Russian army moved on from Chernobyl to seize the functioning power station at Zaporizhia."" -- Roger Boyd - The [London] Times ""A timely study of how nuclear power plants and the unpredictability of war make for a frightening cocktail.... Plokhy manages to cut through the fog of Russian disinformation to keep the complex story straight, and interviews with key figures on the Ukrainian side add a personal dimension.... Plokhy capably chronicles a disturbing tale, underlining how close the world came to another nuclear catastrophe."" -- Kirkus Reviews ""Chernobyl Roulette is a fast-paced, illuminating narrative of the incredible heroism and courage shown by the personnel of Ukrainian nuclear facilities that were attacked by Russian forces, and of the stupefying recklessness with which the Russian military pushed the world to the brink of a nuclear disaster. A must read."" -- Yaroslav Trofimov, author of Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine’s War of Independence ""A terrifying blow-by-blow account of what could have been the most disastrous postscript to the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. Plokhy’s exacting, precise, and ultimately humane account is an act of global public service. This is a necessary book—and I can think of no writer better qualified to write it."" -- Cal Flyn, author of Islands of Abandonment: Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape

Author Information

Serhii Plokhy is a professor of Ukrainian history at Harvard University. Author of Chernobyl Roulette, he is a leading authority on the history of the Cold War. He lives in Burlington, Massachusetts.

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