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Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster,
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Stian
I've read both now (finished Midnight yesterday), and while I liked both I prefer Higginbotham.
Part of the reason for this is the balance; I thought Plokhy spent too much space/time on Ukrainian intellectuals/writers reaction to the accident and too little on the cleanup and containment of the exclusion zone(barely covered by Plokhy). While I can see that the intellectual angle lead to political changes, and isn't unimportant, weighed up against the containment efforts...I think that warrants more attention on overall (I almost skipped the last parts of Plokhy's book).
And, Higginbotham has more extensive sources and bibliography (almost exhaustive). Also interesting, Higginbotham and Plokhy portray Chernobyl manager Bryukhanov quite differently IMO.
So, while I enjoyed both, if I would have to recommend one, I'd go for Higginbotham, which I found more balanced, ultimately more readable and better sourced.
Part of the reason for this is the balance; I thought Plokhy spent too much space/time on Ukrainian intellectuals/writers reaction to the accident and too little on the cleanup and containment of the exclusion zone(barely covered by Plokhy). While I can see that the intellectual angle lead to political changes, and isn't unimportant, weighed up against the containment efforts...I think that warrants more attention on overall (I almost skipped the last parts of Plokhy's book).
And, Higginbotham has more extensive sources and bibliography (almost exhaustive). Also interesting, Higginbotham and Plokhy portray Chernobyl manager Bryukhanov quite differently IMO.
So, while I enjoyed both, if I would have to recommend one, I'd go for Higginbotham, which I found more balanced, ultimately more readable and better sourced.
Jonathan
Higginbotham's book is very engaging. There is chronological narrative, but not overly dramatic. The whole book is written from the hand of someone who is clearly wants to tell a story, not dump information. The science is not dry and data driven, but precisely appropriate for what you need to know as things unfold.
Laura
I've not read either (so am also not directly answering your question, sorry), but did read Voices from Chernobyl by Svetlana Alexievich, an oral history published in 2006. The author won the Nobel Prize for Literature. It's a heartbreaking book, as you might imagine; thought it deserved a shout-out in this thread.
Kathy
I just finished Midnight in Chernobyl. It was not an easy read, some very technical information, about 40 different Russian characters to try and remember and skips back and forth a lot. I still found it to be an important book and glad I read it but complex (at least for me).
Martha
A recent review in the NYT looked at Higginbotham and Brown's books. Not what you asked, but the review might help you decide if you want to read either of these two. I just finished Midnight in Chernobyl and found it fascinating. Would highly recommend it.https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/03/bo...
Aris
I'm midway through Plokhy's and I do not find it particularly captivating. It's just okay. It is well researched and very detailed when it comes to characters etc., but he does not produce a great story. I would also expect a little more intuition around the physics of the accident itself, I found the descriptions shallow. That being said, I have not read the other one at all. I'm a bit split as well as to whether I should finish Plokhy's or switch. Plokhy has more books under his belt as well as academic credentials, Higginbotham's book on the other hand has a better score both on Goodreads and Amazon.
Victor Sonkin
I've read both. Higginbotham is infinitely better. Apart from the fact that one third of Plokhy's book is not about Chernobyl at all, but about various Ukraine-centered things, it's also worse researched (which seems strange, actually); some of the people who survived are depicted as having died in the disaster and so on. Higginbotham's book you simply can't let go, it's absolutely gripping.
Niklas Pivic
I'm not answering your question, but this review in The Guardian draws on what Higginbotham, Plokhy, and Kate Brown wrote in their books and compares some of the materials slightly: https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...
Hollowman
I didn't know about the Plokhy book (thx!). I do know that another recent book on Chernobyl is Manual For Survival by Kate Brown (MIT science historian), released Mar 12, 2019.
Hmmm ... all these books and the superb HBO miniseries ...coincidence?
Hmmm ... all these books and the superb HBO miniseries ...coincidence?
Jasmine
Thanks for asking this question -- I was wondering the same thing.
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