Chernobyl's Wild Kingdom: Life in the Dead Zone

Chernobyl's Wild Kingdom: Life in the Dead Zone
by Rebecca L. Johnson

In 1986 there as a nuclear explosion.  This zone filled with radiation is now known as the Dead Zone, this book looks into what is now happening to the wildlife in the area.  Scientists believed the area would be a dead wasteland, but the wildlife is coming back, even though anything in that area is radioactive.  Scientists are researching the area and how the plants and animals are able to survive in the radiation.

I picked this book up after we starting watching the new HBO show Chernobyl and I wanted to learn more.  This was a really interesting book, filled with picture and facts about the wildlife.  The book also briefly went into what had happened before moving on into the wildlife in the present day.

Apparently scientist are divided a bit on the topic of radiation.  Some believe the low levels of radiation could actually be beneficial and help the animals be healthier while other scientists believe the low levels of radiation is deadly.

There was a map of all the present nuclear power plants around the world and I was shocked there were so many.  The book is a few years old by now, so the map could be off a bit, but it gives you a general idea.  

It also mentioned how people like the nuclear power plants since they are able to produce so much energy, even if they are dangerous.   The author went on to point out that otherwise most of our energy is coming from burning coal, which leads to more carbon dioxide in the air, and eventually more global warming.  The population keeps growing and we need more electricity and the demand keeps growing. 

It was a really interesting book about what is happening to that area that is filled with radiation.