This is an interesting book geared toward middle school kids about the cold war between the US and Russia. If you have a kid in your life that is interested in this time period or the subject, then this is a book you should have them read.

Steve Sheinkin is my go to for narrative non-fiction that entertains and informs really well. These are targeted at middle school age, and the way things are explained work for middle school and up. If you want to know about the cold war and spies and the bay of pigs in detail, with information about the humans involved and their humanity, this is the book for you even if you're an adult. I really enjoyed how much Russian spy information he managed to get in there, that part is super interesting and not covered in history textbooks.

I love this rendition of the Cuban Missile Crisis. I'm always a bit skeptical of historical tellings due to propaganda but this seemed relatively realistic and honest to the reality without falling into American nationalist propaganda. It would be a really interesting book to read and dissect in class with students to compare how textbooks tell the crisis as a part of history versus how this story portrays personal realities to the characters in the book.

Fallout is history come alive! An engaging, nonfiction book covering two nations in a cutthroat competition to build the best nuclear bombs (later known as the Cold War.) Reading this book is like being immersed in a breaking story that has just hit the newspapers and you get to tag along on the crazy ride! Middle graders will not want to miss out on this book!

This middle grade book looks at a moment in history that not many of us know, the beginning of the Cold War and the espionage and intrigue that fueled it.

This non-fiction title reads like a thriller! It is geared to middle school ages but very readable for older readers as well. It seems very well-researched and looks at multiple perspectives, which makes it quite interesting and shows the complexity of the time period. I haven't read anything by this author before but I would definitely pick up another of his books.

Spending the majority of my life during the cold war years I have to say this book was very interesting. But hey what book that has spies, and bombs wouldn't be pretty cool. Those days of duck and cover (like it would really help) are gone and kids today have their own wars they grew up with. This book picks up after World War II when the US and their ally USSR turn on each other and become each others enemy. When the U2 spy plane is new and the US thought they had the upper hand.

This book has plenty of action and suspense galore, but I think the title has much more meaning than just nuclear. This is a great book that tells the history of that period.

A great follow up to Bomb. Sheinkin knows how to make history and nonfiction come alive for young readers.

Steve Sheinkin brings nail-biting history to life again in his new book Fallout. This book follows his Bomb: The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon, winner of a Newbery Honor award and a National Book Awards finalist. Fallout, a vivid portrayal of the Cold War, should be in the awards cycle for the coming year as well.

Sheinkin fills his book with the people of the Cold War beginning with a paperboy whose pay includes a hollowed-out nickel used to pass along spy secrets. He includes the spies, one that is inept; the schoolchildren practicing hiding under their desks in case of a nuclear blast; Francis Gary Powers, the captured U-2 pilot; Harry Seidel, tunnel digger and rescuer working to bring East Berliners past the Berlin Wall; and the major competitors – Krushchev, Kennedy, and Castro, who nervously try to outbluff each other.

The gripping story moves among these main participants and others with finely drawn characters taking part in a plot that would make a great fictional thriller, except that it is all true. The Soviets have seen the atomic bomb at the end of World War II and don’t want to come in second. The United States is equally fearful of coming in second. Both work on the next and bigger bomb and wind up with the capability between them of destroying the world. Castro and Cuba have the capability of being the catalyst that sets off this third World War. Few people knew how close the world came to being annihilated by hydrogen bombs.

This book is listed for ages ten and up, but the “up” has no limit. Even those who remember the time will feel the tension in this meticulously researched account. History buffs and lovers of spy thrillers of all ages will love it.

I would like to thank Net Galley and the author for providing with access to a review copy of this book.

This book offers a well research and highly entertaining trip through the post War World II nuclear, political, and conflict history.

What I found most interesting were the background stories behind the many well know historical crisis described in the book. They add very good nuance to the content.

The information of presented in an easy to digest manner and flows well. Easy to read and goes by rapidly as the story/information comes in a engaging suspenseful manner.

Very interesting book for younger readers; accessible information on things "the kids today" never really thought about.

Fallout by Steve Sheinkin tells the complex history of the Cold War. It captures the period between the end of WWII, closing its telling with the Cuban Missile Crisis. As a narrative nonfiction text, it is the perfect resource for studying and learning more about this historical period. Sheinkin expertly weaves a narrative that incorporates various perspectives. It presents historically significant moments and essential information. Yet, he still crafts a text that is digestible and understandable, especially for a younger audience.

Educators now have the perfect book to teach the Cold War (up until the Cuban Missile Crisis). When examining that epoch, those early decades can be easily overlooked, skipped, or simply glossed over due to the complexities of this conflict. It is complicated, but in Sheinkin’s hands, this history comes alive in an accessible, realistic manner. Sheinkin deftly shows how political brinkmanship almost destroyed the human race. As a result, Fallout will leave readers with important questions about humanity, our ability to work together, and our capacity for destruction, including the stark possibility of our choices causing our species to be wiped off the face of the Earth. Those conversations remain relevant always, particularly as technology advances and conflict flares across the globe. The Cold War’s tensions have never fully left us, and they offer lessons for us today if we stop to consider them. Fallout provides teachers with just such a valuable opportunity.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher, Roaring Brook Press, for an eARC of this book.

10 out of 5 stars!! Sheinkin does it again!! I did not know much about the Cold War except for bits ehre and there, but after reading this AMAZING book, I feel like I understand it! Sheinkin has a way of storytelling that absolutely grips me and doesn't let go! He gives enough detail to picture whats happening without too much to bore me! He is the master of nonfiction in my opinion, and I will never stop recommending this book just like I haven't stopped recommending his others! Absolutely phenomenal!!

What I love about Steve Sheinkin books are that they are meticulously researched and shed light on stories that don't get told. He has a clear passion for making history come alive for teenagers and even adults who need a refresher (or introduction!)

This is a terrific retelling of a turbulent era in international relations. All the crazy stuff that I lived through is told in a very entertaining way. The author creates a fast-paced reading experience that brings all the major players of the era to vivid life. From the brink of nuclear war, the space race, and the surreal attempts on Castro's life propel the continuing tale of American missteps on the world stage.

A great book on the Cuban Missile crisis and how close the world came to a Third World War. The story is well developed and the first hand accounts and personal insights of those who were there really enhances the book and your understanding. It is a terrific read for the history enthusiast.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I love how the author takes complex historical incidents and makes them accessible. He covers the Bay of Pigs, Berlin Wall, and Cuban missal crisis with detail and builds suspense even though we know the outcomes. He introduces us to important, yet unfamiliar characters—spies, children, submarine captains, etc who all play pivotal roles. He also provides insight into the relationship of Kennedy and Khrushchev and the negotiations that kept us from WWWIII. He provides great closure, telling the reader what happens to all of the characters. It’s a great way to learn history.

The book "Fallout" by Steve Sheinkin, brings back lots of personal memories of the time when we were involved with the Soviet Union in the Cold War. The threats of nuclear annihilation were real, probably on both sides but the M.A.D. (mutually assured destruction) as well as some lucky breaks for human kind prevented us from being eliminated as a species.

The book is obviously focused on a younger reader who did not live through these turbulent times. For this purpose, it seems to have met its goal of being a warning to this current generation for whom the threats of Cuban Missile Crisis don't seem real and maybe are covered in a paragraph, if that, in current history texts.

The book reads sort of like a novel but carries the ominous message that there are still forces at work in teh world that all people need to on constant watch for their potential for evil. It is well written and covers a time period when there were, as stated in the subtitle "Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown."

Sheinkin has written another well-researched, easy-to-read informational book. This book could be seen as a follow-up to Bomb. While there has been much written on WWII, there is little in the YA literature about the effects of WWII, particularly the Cold War. Sheinkin does a masterful job of interweaving the political climate, political events, the Space Race, and personalities of the time. While many YA and adult readers may know the term "Cold War," I suspect that few actually know of how the story came to be. Sheinkin's book would be an expert addition to a high-school course on the 20th century.

From the author of the award-winning 2012 book Bomb, this newer book covers similar topics and has the same fast-paced, narrative writing style, almost sounding like fiction but with a wider cast of characters. While Bomb focused mainly on scientists and technology, Fallout features spies and politicians. Bomb took place during World War II, although the events it describes led directly to the Cold War, but Fallout is entirely about the Cold War, specifically focusing on the Cuban Missile Crisis and the events that led to it. Given the book’s teenage target audience, it does an excellent job of covering the complicated political situation in great detail. In fact, despite the fact that I went through a phase when I read everything I could find that mentioned President Kennedy, this book is probably the most thorough description of the Cuban Missile Crisis that I’ve ever read. I highly recommend this book for teenagers and adults alike, including those who don’t normally enjoy nonfiction or war stories. Sheinkin’s writing is so engaging that I’m sure somewhere out there, there will be some readers who will discover that they’re more interested in the topic than they would have guessed.