The Chernobyl Disaster (History's Greatest Disasters) by Rebecca Rissman

The Chernobyl Disaster (History's Greatest Disasters) Reviews

• 
  Sarah

  Book 15 of Nuclear Studies (for Kids!):
  
  While I am not trained to determine approximate reading levels of kids' books, this one is definitely for younger kids, pre-periodic table ages. The back of the book indicates that it meets Common Core standards for grades 3-6. The book is short and succinct and doesn't delve into much of the science of nuclear power, defining atoms as "extremely small particles". There are quotes from eyewitnesses, plenty of pictures and easy-to-understand diagrams, and thought-provoking questions throughout.
  
  I tried to get in touch with the way I read as a child because I do remember reading books like this. I know this book would have left me thinking about the safety of nuclear power, but would have left me with additional questions about how it works. The subject is handled tastefully, if simply. The book ends on a positive note, speaking about how people used the disaster at Chernobyl to create safer nuclear power and encourages readers to learn more to develop their own opinions on nuclear power usage.
  
  My biggest factual issue with the book is that when it discusses the Pripyat firefighters, it says: "Many were in such a hurry they did not even put on protective clothing. They wanted to put out the fire and save plant employees." Maybe this is one interpretation of it, but all sources I've read say that the firefighters didn't wear protective gear because they didn't know it was a fire in the reactor and many of them didn't understand the danger--evidenced by the fact that they were casually picking up pieces of the highly radioactive graphite blown out of the reactor.
  
  I would have liked to see some pronunciations included in the text. There are quite a few words that I wouldn't expect a child reading this to be able to pronounce just because they've probably never seen the words before. However, even I as an adult was surely not alone in wondering how to properly pronounce Pripyat when I first read it.
• 
  Rebecca

  I read this at bedtime over three nights with the 8YO. He enjoyed it but thought it was kind of simple and didn't explain things well...he wants to know more about the disaster from other sources. This would be a good book for younger children, maybe 2nd graders, who are just starting to learn about global events.
  
  The book did spark some very good questions though. My favorite is, "If I got into a time machine and went back and prevented the Chernobyl disaster, would it change history?" Oh my baby yes. This led into a brief discussion about the fall of the USSR before I turned out the lights. That's another story for another time, when he is older.
  
  I see that another book in this same series of disaster history is the flu pandemic of 1918, so I think we will be checking that one out soon.
• 
  Jessica

  A decent, simple look at the Chernobyl disaster, suitable for older elementary-age students. Though it did not go into the political situation and incompetence at the plant, or how the politics of the USSR helped lead to the disaster.
• 
  Sue

  I didn't like the posed questions at the end of every section. Fake, fake, phony.
  
  It says that it will take 48,000 years to rid ourselves of the effects of this radiation leak. Nah, at the rate of inventions and extraterrestrial intervention, it shouldn't take that long--at all. It says we now have 400 nuclear plants around the world . . . yea, this place will blow up unless we invent a "radiation converter". . . and ramp up recycling.