Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Popsugar lists Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham.

I've always been interested in reading Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster by Svetlana Alexievich.

I'm certain there are more!

Listopia is here

Um, this is a depressing prompt. I'll probably go with one of the books about Chernobyl.

I added two books I've already read to the Listopia. Both are excellent.

Flight of Dreams

Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania

I read The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why before I found out about Pop Sugar. So well-written - highly recommend.

I Googled "man made disasters" and the Flint water crisis came up in the list. I've been wanting to read What the Eyes Don't See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City, written by the doctor that discovered the lead contamination in many of Flint's children, so I'm going to go with that one.

It can be a fictional man-made disaster, right?

Wondering if The Stand by Stephen King would work for this one with a man-made virus???

Meredith! wrote: "It can be a fictional man-made disaster, right?"
I am assuming so. So I am thinking of books that might revolved around the Titanic, Challenger explosion, Man-made viruses, oil spills, a bombing. I am even wondering if climate change a man-made disaster. Or fiction around and after a man made apocalypse.

I have Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukhovsky on my tbr. It's set in a world after the nuclear apocalypse, which forces the surviving Moscow's population to go live in the city's Metro system. Seems like a man-made disaster.

Titanic books would work too, e.g., this one A Night to Remember

I think I'm going to read The Girl Who Came Home for this one

If a man-made virus works, then the Feed series and/or Kingdom of Needle and Bone by Mira Grant should fit the bill.

Lynn wrote: "Popsugar lists Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham.

I've always been interested in reading [book..."

I just finished the Chernobyl book and can highly recommend it.

Would Illuminae work for this? I only glanced at the beginning and it seems like there's a man-made disaster in the beginning - could anyone who's read the book confirm?

Aleksandra wrote: "Would Illuminae work for this? I only glanced at the beginning and it seems like there's a man-made disaster in the beginning - could anyone who's read the book confirm?"

I think so, there are several disasters all of them man made.

Ellie wrote: "Aleksandra wrote: "Would Illuminae work for this? I only glanced at the beginning and it seems like there's a man-made disaster in the beginning - could anyone who's read the book c..."
Thanks! I'll be using that one then.

I think most cli-fi would work here.

Jacqie wrote: "I think most cli-fi would work here."

Thanks for that. I'm not a big atomic bomb or shipwreck reader. But I have enjoyed the clifi I've read in the past, and I think I'll go in that direction.

I've been wanting to read Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster for a few years now. Great opportunity!

I agree with CharIsa that this is a depressing prompt. I think I'll go with a one-time, historical disaster. Flight of Dreams by Ariel Lawhon is about the Hindenberg explosion. Or I may read a novel about the Titanic.

Ive read both these so i wont be reading them but if youre looming for fictional ones:

The Passage
Obernewtyn

Maybe a little outside the box, but I would think The Four Winds and any other books centered on the Great Depression would count as well.

Climate change is a human-made disaster, so I'm going to read All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis or 1,001 Voices on Climate Change: Everyday Stories of Flood, Fire, Drought, and Displacement from Around the World, both of which have a pretty broad spectrum of contributors, so lots of perspective.

I agree with climate change being a man-made disaster. I highly recommend The Right To Be Cold: One Woman's Story of Protecting Her Culture, the Arctic and the Whole Planet. . If you're looking to do the challenge with BIPOC author, this could be for you.

I don't re-read often, but I feel one coming on...

I’d say yes definitely

Sonia wrote: "Wondering if The Stand by Stephen King would work for this one with a man-made virus???"

Hello! Emergency/disaster management specialist here. I've got a Master's degree in emergency management and I just wanted to pop in and leave a few ideas here about this prompt for anybody who may have a hard time finding something they'd like to read. I'll try not to be too verbose, but I make no promises.

One of the points made early on and frequently in my degree program was that by the definition we use in the field a disaster is determined based on the human impact it has, with exceptions for things like horrific wildfires in the Amazon which may not threaten many people but destroy massive swathes of rainforest and can threaten wildlife tremendously. A category five hurricane swirling around the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean knocking fish around isn't a disaster, however a category two hurricane that hits a region particularly vulnerable to heavy rain and/or high wind due to how things are constructed is a disaster. That's because of the impact of the storm on people and the cost, both in building and resource damage as well as human lives. That is to say, if an area isn't able, for whatever reason, to build to mitigate against the damage, it's general considered to be the human impact that caused it to be a disaster.

So what does this mean for this prompt? If you don't want to read about terrorism, war (yes, war IS considered a man-made disaster), economic disasters (the Great Depression counts), human fault (such as Chernobyl), etc. something you can look for are books about "natural" disasters, or things we have no control over such as hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, and earthquakes, and find books about the impact that happened because of decisions people have made or limitations due to how people and society are in general. One such book is Five Days at Memorial, which was something of a miniature disaster on its own during Hurricane Katrina. It's a bit of a bend, but many within my field would probably argue that it works.

I also have a growing collection of books that would work, between my shelves and my husband's shelves, which I will attempt to remember to share at some point.

I don't come in here terribly often, so if anybody has a question or anything, I recommend sending me a message as I'm much more likely to be curious about mysterious messages and come check those. It definitely is a bit of a downer for a prompt but I'm really, really glad they selected it. There's so much going on in the world and it's hard to keep up with all of it.

ETA: Pandemics also count as man-made disasters, for a number of reasons. Also, similar (almost identical) post in the FB group is mine. I'm more active there, for those in both.

I might read A Terrible Kindness which is about the aftermath of the Aberfan disaster. A landslip caused by mining landed on the school in a Welsh mining town, (if you've watched The Crown, there was an episode about it). Obviously it's going to be a sad one though.

Sonia wrote: "Wondering if The Stand by Stephen King would work for this one with a man-made virus???"

Definitely

I'm actually really looking forward to this prompt! I added a bunch of books to the listopia, but I have a couple others that I think might be pushing it, so I thought I'd suggest them here and see what others thought.

A Thousand Lives: The Untold Story of Hope, Deception, and Survival at Jonestown are death cults a "disaster"?
Ghost Ship: The Mysterious True Story of the Mary Celeste and Her Missing Crew not sure if it's more natural or man-made.
Moby-Duck: The True Story of 28,800 Bath Toys Lost at Sea and of the Beachcombers, Oceanographers, Environmentalists, and Fools, Including the Author, Who Went in Search of Them definitely man-made, but again, not quite sure it meets the definition of "disaster". I started it, and it started out fun, so it might be a more light-hearted option for people who aren't thrilled with the depressing nature of this prompt.

Jennifer W wrote: "I'm actually really looking forward to this prompt! I added a bunch of books to the listopia, but I have a couple others that I think might be pushing it, so I thought I'd suggest them here and see..."

The way Jonestown went down, I would absolutely count that one as a disaster from my perspective as an emergency management professional.

Jennifer W wrote: "I'm actually really looking forward to this prompt! I added a bunch of books to the listopia, but I have a couple others that I think might be pushing it, so I thought I'd suggest them here and see..."


omg I have Moby Duck on my TBR and it never occurred to me that it would work here! I'll add that to my ideas.

Yesterday I googled a bunch of post-apocalyptic novels and added all of the "man-made" disaster novels to our Listopia, like On the Beach (which I read as a teen and I am NOT re-reading because that was depressing)

I'm so fascinated by Jonestown. From what I've read and watched, I can see how people got sucked in and then it turned into.... well... a disaster.

I think Moby Duck is pushing it, but I imagine he talks about ocean pollution, the Great Garbage Patches, etc, so I feel like I could give it the wiggle room to work. I've been wanting to get to
it for ages!

Most of what I added were non fiction, I dunno, I just couldn't quite justify the novels I've read, maybe I'll think of a few that would work.

This is one heck of a heavy topic because I don't really love reading about really harsh things. I might go with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes because The Hunger Games and the world it created would be a man-made disaster, I feel. If someone disagrees with this, feel free to tell me and maybe I can think of something else.

Jennifer W wrote: "I think Moby Duck is pushing it ..."



Hey, 28,000 bath toys lost at sea was a disaster for somebody!!!

I was trying to think of lighter options for this prompt: what about Hype : How Scammers, Grifters, and Con Artists Are Taking Over the Internet—and Why We're Following, which talks a lot about the Fyre Festival "disaster"?
It's usually referred to online as a disaster, and was definitely man-made, but as far as I remember the most serious consequences were people losing money and a small number of people requiring medical attention for dehydration and heatstroke... not pleasant, but nothing especially traumatic in the long run.

Could this include trying to prevent a disaster? If so:

State of Terror

Anything about the Titanic should work, shouldn't it? It was man-made and after reading the enthralling nonfiction book A Night to Remember it seems to me there was a lot of "human error" as well? At least I would count it...

Meredith! wrote: "It can be a fictional man-made disaster, right?"
I wouldn't know why not!

Simone wrote: "Titanic books would work too, e.g., this one A Night to Remember"
Oops, sorry, I hadn't seen this post when I posted about the same book!

From my TBRs/wish lists

The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History

Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor's Story
In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West
The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story
Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy
The Burning: The Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921
Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre
The Book of Rosy: A Mother's Story of Separation at the Border

Angel of Greenwood
The Red Pencil
Refugee
Zane and the Hurricane: A Story of Katrina

Megan wrote: "Lynn wrote: "Popsugar lists Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham.

I've always been interested in reading [book..."

I just finished the Chernobyl book and can highly recommend it."
Great!

Caity wrote: "Hello! Emergency/disaster management specialist here. I've got a Master's degree in emergency management and I just wanted to pop in and leave a few ideas here about this prompt for anybody who may...

One such book is Five Days at Memorial, which was something of a miniature disaster on its own during Hurricane Katrina. It's a bit of a bend, but many within my field would probably argue that it works."
I'm so glad you mentioned that book. I own a copy and have been wanting to read it in forever! Thank you for lending your expertise!

Frankenstein

I have Illuminae by Amie Kaufman.

This is a genre that I love, and maybe that's why I can't find a book to read. I've read all the ones that appeal to me, lol.

If anyone still hasn't read Oryx and Crake, I highly recommend it. It is sad and beautiful.

I listened to the audiobook for Illuminae and thought it was great. Imo, though, the sequel is not so great.

I also really liked Station Eleven

I think I'll look out for one that is being published in 2022.

Sonia wrote: "Wondering if The Stand by Stephen King would work for this one with a man-made virus???"

What an excellent idea! I think I just might take that.

It'S been a while and im not 100% sure if the virus was man made, but i THINK the Maze runner series would work?

M wrote: "This is one heck of a heavy topic because I don't really love reading about really harsh things. I might go with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes because The Hunger Games and the ..."

I wouldn't consider that a "disaster". Post-apocalyptic, sure.

Megan wrote: "M wrote: "This is one heck of a heavy topic because I don't really love reading about really harsh things. I might go with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes because The Hunger Game..."

I would consider it a disaster because of two things; one the apocalypse is most likely because of something man-made and two, the Hunger Games would probably be considered a man-made disaster. Forced to send off two teens to murder each other would be an absolute disaster. But that's my opinion.

M wrote: "Megan wrote: "M wrote: "This is one heck of a heavy topic because I don't really love reading about really harsh things. I might go with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes because T..."

They also did some other sketchy things like releasing mutations which mated with indigenous species. That almost parallels the release of African killer bees in Brazil which mutated and moved north.

I've always been curious about wildfires especially more so since the ones in California have been man-made and they're happening more frequently.

I was going through the books on man-made disasters I have and this one stood out in my collection: Paradise: One Town's Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire

This one is about the Camp Fire in 2018 and how it was started by an electric company.

I’m wondering if A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet would work here. From the summaries I can find, it seems to feature a hurricane that is the result of climate change. Can anyone confirm?