I’ve never gravitated toward fictional horror stories. However, after reading Nuclear War: A Scenario, I found myself thinking that perhaps it’s less frightening to lose oneself in fictional nightmares than to confront the potential reality Annie Jacobsen presents in her 2025 book. The implications of her fact-filled, dystopian scenario of a plausible World War III could not be more terrifying.
In terms of readability, Nuclear War is an easy book to get through in terms of sentence structure and pacing. But digesting the message—contemplating the risks and imagining the possibilities—makes it a very hard read. Emotionally and intellectually, it’s demanding.
Across roughly 300 pages, Jacobsen leads the reader through a meticulously researched and disturbingly believable account of what could happen if a rogue state—in Jacobsen’s scenario, North Korea—launches a nuclear bomb. She prepares the reader by offering insights into America’s long-standing secret plans for nuclear war, alongside a historical overview of the global nuclear arms buildup.
Though Jacobsen’s scenario is fictional, it is grounded in real facts. She supports her narrative with 60 pages of notes and references, including transcripts and testimony from over 20 highly credible sources.
Jacobsen quote two such experts, William Perry, former secretary of defence and Richard Garwin, thermonuclear weapons designer, who “acknowledges that all it takes is one nihilistic madman with nuclear arsenal to start a nuclear war no one can win.”
As I read the book, I repeatedly hoped she was exaggerating. But each time, Jacobsen presented carefully documented evidence that underlined the seriousness of her claims. Unfortunately, she doesn’t conclude on a hopeful or optimistic note. Unlike many climate change discussions that end with calls to action or visions for a better future, Nuclear War offers no such comfort.
I have long been critical of the lack of emergency preparedness in local governments. The complete absence of war scenarios—especially nuclear war—in local planning only deepens my concern. If we aren’t adequately prepared for a severe flood or wildfire, God help us when World War III begins.
