Will I love Nuclear War?

Annie Jacobsen is an acute observer of the absurdities of the defence industry. In this timely and very lively book, she turns her attention to the issue of nuclear catastrophe. Like movies such as 'Fail Safe', she narrates 'A Scenario', which, while at times stretching credulity, is highly readable. Her writing style is spare and precise, creating a fast-paced narrative that is difficult to put down. The terrible scenes of destruction, and the decisions and reactions that are put in motion by the various 'programs' and 'operational plans' are horribly vivid, and difficult to purge from memory. While I'm sure… show more.

Annie Jacobsen’s book reads like a Tom Clancey thriller: gripping and compelling. Her straight-forward, time-based analysis of what might happen in the first minutes of a nuclear war is both mind-boggling and fascinating. She describes surprising details about which systems could fail or succeed, exposing how we are both over and under prepared to handle the unthinkable. Beneath it all, is a picture of specific and almost unbelievable destruction.

Overshadowing her examination of deterrents, flaws, and failures are two chilling questions: Why do we need enough nuclear bombs to destroy earth several times over? How vulnerable are we to an… show more.

Jacobsen’s terrifying account of how rapidly global nuclear destruction can happen is why I’ve already recommended it to many colleagues and friends. It reminded me of Jonathon Schell’s The Fate of the Earth that was one of the factors in my decision to join the Bethlehem Peace Pilgrimage.

By describing the interlocking U.S. launch detection, command and control, and delivery systems, Nuclear War provides readers with a realistic series of events that demonstrate the dangers of maintaining nuclear arsenals. Even though I have read scores of books regarding nuclear weapons over the last 45 years, this book gave me new… show more.

I liked Annie Jacobsen's Nuclear War: A Scenario because it delves into the terrifying possibility of a nuclear conflict in today's world. The story begins with a nuclear explosion near Washington D.C., and the intensity never lets up from there. I appreciated her meticulous research and investigative skills, and Jacobsen paints a disturbingly realistic picture of what such an event would entail.

Sitting in my reading room, I couldn't help the feeling that I was a missileer stationed in a control center deep in the heart of North Dakota missile field. As I read her book, she seamlessly mixed intense… show more.

Probably a good idea to have a competent person holding the nuclear football.

What a stunning book.

Just absolutely terrifying and perspective-altering, despite basically being a well-written (but intentionally somewhat cold) description of what would happen if someone were to spark a nuclear conflict.

Love is probably not the term I would use for this book. I am glad that Annie Jacobsen wrote it, and I think anyone interested in the real threat of nuclear war should read it. There are moments in it—particularly one very consequential decision that the U.S. president makes—that are highly implausible and have generated criticism from people who have devoted their careers to nuclear deterrence.

However, it is worth noting that no one actually knows how the leader of a nuclear-armed state would react to the news of an incoming nuclear attack because that scenario has never happened before.… show more.

Do you ever worry about nuclear war? Do you ever think about what would happen if nuclear weapons were actually launched by any of the nine countries that possess them?

I do, and Annie Jacobsen’s new book was the perfect book for me. It’s a thoroughly researched, absolutely gripping second-by-second account of how nuclear war might unfold.

From the first page, I was hooked. This nonfiction thriller grabs you and takes you through a devastatingly plausible scenario where a single nuclear missile launch by North Korea leads to a global nuclear war. The detail is harrowing. The facts read like… show more.