Chernobyl, Life, and Other Disasters - by Yevgenia Nayberg (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Strong-willed Genya sets her mind to attending art school in 1980s Ukraine, amidst the turmoil of Soviet control, the Cold War, and the unfolding Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Genya--the nickname of the book's author and story's protagonist, Yevgenia--knows from age five that she wants to be an artist. When she turns eleven, she'll apply to the same prestigious art school that her mother attended. But making the cut won't be easy, especially with the school's open-secret rule that no more than 1% of the student body can be Jewish.

The years before Genya's eleventh birthday bring plenty to distract her. Nothing in Soviet Ukraine is quite as it seems; adults mock the government, but only in private; and her classmates are terrified of American bomb strikes. And that's all before April 26, 1986, when Genya's police officer neighbor gets called to an emergency in a town she's never heard of: Chernobyl.

A graphic memoir account of creator Yevgenia Nayberg's childhood, Past Perfect Radioactive is both deeply personal and a glimpse into broader Soviet intelligentsia experiences. Young readers curious about life elsewhere, particularly in the face of disaster, will find ample details to devour, while those dreaming of a creative life will take inspiration from Genya's perseverance. Salient and yet often slyly funny, this is a must-read for any graphic memoir fan.

Review Quotes

The rare and artful sort of story that finds the brilliant in the banal, the hilarious in the harrowing, and universal in the personal.
--Daniel Nayeri, award-winning Author of Everything Sad Is Untrue

Yevgenia Nayberg shares the charming adventure of her life during one of the most interesting periods of our world's history with moments of humor, melancholy, and beautiful honesty. I absolutely adored this book.
--Dan Santat, National Book Award-winning author of A First Time for Everything

About the Author

Yevgenia Nayberg is an award-winning illustrator, painter, and set and costume designer. She has received multiple awards for her picture book illustrations, including a Sydney Taylor Honor and two notable recognitions. She is the author and illustrator of the picture books A Party for Florine, Anya's Secret Society, Typewriter, Mona Lisa In New York, and I Hate Borsch!, and the illustrator of Drop by Drop by Jacqueline Jules, among other collaborations. Born and raised in Kyiv, Ukraine, she now lives in New York City.