Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown

by Steve Sheinkin

Overview

New York Times bestselling author Steve Sheinkin presents a follow up to his award-winning book Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon, taking readers on a terrifying journey into the Cold War and our mutual assured destruction.

As World War II comes to a close, the United States and the Soviet Union emerge as the two greatest world powers on extreme opposites of the political spectrum. After the United States showed its hand with the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, the Soviets refuse to be left behind. With communism sweeping the globe, the two nations begin a neck-and-neck competition to build even more destructive bombs and conquer the Space Race. In their battle for dominance, spy planes fly above, armed submarines swim deep below, and undercover agents meet in the dead of night.

The Cold War game grows more precarious as weapons are pointed towards each other, with fingers literally on the trigger. The decades-long showdown culminates in the Cuban Missile Crisis, the world's close call with the third—and final—world war.

Winner of the 2022 Kids' Book Choice Award for 6th to 8th Grade Book of the Year
A Shelf Awareness Best Children's Book of 2021
A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book of 2021
A Horn Book Fanfare Best Book of the Year

Praise for BOMB:

A Newbery Honor book
A National Book Awards finalist for Young People's Literature
A Washington Post Best Kids Books of the Year title

“This is edge-of-the seat material that will resonate with YAs who clamor for true spy stories, and it will undoubtedly engross a cross-market audience of adults who dozed through the World War II unit in high school.” —BCCB, starred review

“...reads like an international spy thriller, and that's the beauty of it.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“[A] complicated thriller that intercuts action with the deftness of a Hollywood blockbuster.” —Booklist, , starred review

“A must-read…” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“A superb tale of an era and an effort that forever changed our world.” —Kirkus

Also by Steve Sheinkin:

The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights
Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team
Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War
Which Way to the Wild West?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About Westward Expansion
King George: What Was His Problem?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About the American Revolution
Two Miserable Presidents: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About the Civil War
Born to Fly: The First Women's Air Race Across America

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250149015
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	35,504
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.30(d)
Lexile:	890L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Steve Sheinkin is the acclaimed author of fast-paced, cinematic nonfiction histories for young readers, including Born to Fly; Undefeated; Most Dangerous; The Port Chicago 50; Bomb; and The Notorious Benedict Arnold. His accolades include a Newbery Honor, three Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards, a Sibert Medal, and three National Book Award finalist honors. Sheinkin lives in Saratoga Springs, New York, with his wife and two children.

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Paperboy 1

Part I Two Hollow Coins 5

Cold Warrior 9

Hollow Com #1 15

The Super 19

The Long Game 27

The Worst Spy 33

The Turtle and the Dragon 38

Early Warning 44

Secret World 48

We Will Bury You 55

Man or Monster? 62

Hollow Coin #2 68

Zugzwang 75

Alive and Kicking 80

Center Stage 85

Little Boy Blue 91

Part 2 The Hedgehog and the Pants 99

Origin Story 103

First Pitch 110

The Countdown 116

Over America 124

The Bay of Pigs 130

The Headless Spy 140

Light the Candle 147

Vienna 155

Time to Start 161

The Berlin Wall 169

Human Race 176

Out of the East 184

The Decision 190

Part 3 Eyeball to Eyeball 197

Grave Issues 201

Special Weapons 207

Milk Run 212

Bullfighter 218

Pretty Bad Fix 223

Your Move 230

The Cuban Missile Crisis 237

If Time Permits 243

Blink 251

Knot of War 259

Final Offer 265

First Shot 272

Moscow Time 278

Rematch 287

Epilogue: Choose Your Own Ending 293

Source Notes 305

Bibliography 323

Acknowledgments 333

Image Credits 334

Index 335

Editorial Reviews

★ 09/13/2021

This twisty spy story interweaves tautly paced political drama to document the perilous Cold War period and escalating conflict between the United States and Soviet Union. Newbery Honoree Sheinkin immediately hooks readers with an account of how a 1953 chance exchange of two hollow coins with film hidden inside tipped the CIA off to a Soviet spy ring; eventually, the lens extends to the Cuban Missile Crisis and the standoff between U.S. president John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. In addition to spies and political machinations, Sheinkin skillfully describes the science behind the race to develop fission bombs and conquer space, the nuclear threat and mutually assured destruction, and how the fear, bomb shelters, and classroom drills infused everyday life. Throughout, the highly charged narrative maintains a strong perspective and keen attention to detail, rounding out the figures involved—such as the American pilot Gary Powers, who flew U-2 jets to spy on Russia—with character and personality. The midsection can sometimes lag as it details the intricate chess game between Kennedy and Khrushchev, but b&w photographs heighten the tension in this dramatic and informative chronicle. Ages 10–up. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"In this gripping account, Newbery Honor Book author and Sibert medalist Sheinkin offers an intense narrative that captures the terrifying tensions of the Cold War." —Booklist, starred review

"Sheinkin reprises his role as masterful, ever-so-wry storyteller, winking his audience into complicity in his critique of boneheaded brinksmanship..." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review

"In tightly organized chapters adorned with historical photos, Sheinkin seamlessly weaves the stories of different players and includes meticulously well-researched details to personalize and humanize his subjects... A first purchase for all teen collections." —School Library Journal, starred review

"Throughout, the highly charged narrative maintains a strong perspective and keen attention to detail, rounding out the figures involved—such as the American pilot Gary Powers, who flew U-2 jets to spy on Russia—with character and personality." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Steve Sheinkin recounts the "most intense years of the Cold War" with a cinematic writing style that is keenly detailed... Look no further for informative and entertaining nonfiction." —Shelf Awareness, starred review

"Sheinkin crafts an epic narrative with a large cast of characters, far-flung settings, multiple plot strands, and rising suspense, further evidence that one of our best nonfiction writers is also one of our best storytellers." — Book Horn Magazine, starred review

"Steve Sheinkin’s new nonfiction thriller about the Cold War is like one of its key emblems, the U-2 spy plane: fast, lean and able to survey a huge amount of territory." —The New York Times

"An account of a gripping real-life adventure that isn’t over yet." —Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

★ 09/01/2021

Gr 6 Up—Sheinkin delivers another heart-pounding tale, picking up where his 2012 award-winning book Bomb left off: the end of World War II and the start of the Cold War. The story opens in 1953, with Jimmy Bozart, the 13-year old paperboy who discovered a hollow nickel dropped by Soviet spy Rudolf Abel, a key early player in the series of conflicts that would lead up to the Cuban Missile Crisis. In tightly organized chapters adorned with historical photos, Sheinkin seamlessly weaves the stories of different players and includes meticulously well-researched details to personalize and humanize his subjects. Key events from the Cold War are dramatized in detailed scenes, including the inception of the arms race between the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R., the capture of U2 pilot Francis Powers, the Bay of Pigs invasion, and the building of the Berlin Wall. While Sheinkin examines up close the spies, ordinary citizens, scientists, and world leaders—including Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Khrushchev—who put events into motion, he simultaneously considers the bigger picture, not making outright villains or heroes of either side, except perhaps Soviet commander Vasily Arkhipov, who prevented a nuclear submarine strike during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Sheinkin concludes with just how close the world came to catastrophe, and urges readers not to repeat the mistakes of the past. Teens who love history such as Marc Favreau's Spies and historical fiction like Jennifer Nielsen's A Night Divided won't be able to put this one down. VERDICT A first purchase for all teen collections.—Erica Ruscio, Ventress Memorial Lib., Marshfield, MA

School Library Journal

2021-06-24
A heated account of the Cold War.

Sheinkin, known for his accessible, narrative-styled history books for young readers, tackles the arms race during the Cold War era. Opening with a James Bond–style introduction to spies’ tradecraft—hollow nickels, dead drops, and secret codes—it moves through the Eisenhower and Stalin administrations to focus on John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev, culminating in an hour-by-hour breakdown of the Cuban missile crisis. Thoroughly sourced, this fast-moving history provides a good overview of massively complex topics, lighting on the science behind hydrogen bombs, Duck and Cover drills, a bit of cryptography, and a compelling account of Kennedy’s exploits during World War II. There’s not enough exploration, however, of why America was so opposed to communism, no discussion about the benefits and drawbacks of global capitalism, and insufficient exploration of whether America was morally equipped for its superpower status, leaving gaps in the narrative that would help readers gain a deeper understanding of these issues in context. Whipping back and forth between times, places, and people may make it hard for some readers to follow at times, but the adventurous tone will capture and sustain their interest.

An account of a gripping real-life adventure that isn’t over yet. (source notes, bibliography, photo credits, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews