“Nuclear War, A Scenario” by Annie Jacobsen

“All it takes is one crazy, nihilistic leader with a nuclear arsenal to start a war that no one can win.” To write this investigative fiction, journalist Annie Jacobsen relied on a host of specialized documents, some of which have just been declassified.

Nuclear war, A scenario, by Annie Jacobsen, A novel which has some resonance with current events, has just been published by Denoël. And a book which, in the current context, is not easy. Annie Jacobsen is an American journalist, several times a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Specializing in intelligence and internal security, she imagined this scenario in which a state, banned from the international community, a rogue state, launches a nuclear missile against the Pentagon. Everything happens very quickly according to this scenario.

The journalist retains the scenario of a total nuclear war, and according to her, “It only takes one nihilistic, crazy leader with an arsenal to start a war that no one can win”but above all that no one can stop. From the first nuclear missile launched against the United States, to the chain reactions that follow. She naturally chose the worst-case scenario, but with the conviction that this catastrophe will happen one day. And that’s what the book tells us.

A fictional investigation which reads like a thriller, and it’s absolutely chilling. Before the countdown, almost second by second of this total war, Annie Jacobsen poses the problem with this question: how did we get to this point? The well-documented book reminds us of the incredible arsenal that each of the nuclear powers possesses, thousands of warheads, while a few dozen would be more than enough to ravage the world for a few thousand years.

The journalist then develops the chain reaction after the discovery of the first shot. To put together this scenario, Annie Jacobsen looked at specialized documents, some of which have just been declassified. She interviewed dozens of specialists, nuclear physicists, military personnel, senior civil servants, and very high-level political advisors. No one seems to have any illusions about the inevitability of this nuclear confrontation between great powers.

But everyone seems resigned. Nuclear war is an absolutely chilling read. But we can also reassure ourselves by telling ourselves that knowing is always better than not knowing. For Annie Jacobsen, there is no doubt that the danger is the very concept of nuclear deterrence. His story is fascinating, paced like a blockbuster. The filmmaker Denis Villeneuve will also adapt the book for the cinema.