Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space is out now
WINNER OF THE 2024 KIRKUS PRIZE FOR NONFICTION
FINALIST FOR THE 2025 CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE IN NONFICTION
“Stunning”
The Atlantic
“Superb”
The Washington Post
“Devastating”
The New York Times
“Beguiling”
Publishers Weekly (Starred review)
“Riveting”
The Times Literary Supplement
“One of this generation’s best nonfiction writers working at the top of his game”
Garrett M. Graff, author of The Only Plane in the Sky and Watergate
From the author of Midnight in Chernobyl comes a second New York Times bestseller. Challenger, the definitive, dramatic, minute-by-minute account of the 1986 shuttle disaster, is a spellbinding history that reads like a thriller.
Midnight In Chernobyl
The definitive, years-in-the-making account of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster: a powerful investigation into how propaganda, secrecy, and myth have obscured the true story of one of the twentieth century’s greatest disasters.
Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Nonfiction and a New York Times Top Ten Book of the Year.
‘Superb, enthralling and necessarily terrifying... every step feels spring-loaded with tension... extraordinary.’ - New York Times
‘Tells the story of the disaster and its gruesome aftermath with thriller-like flair... wonderful and chilling... written with skill and passion.’ - The Observer
Adam Higginbotham is the author of Midnight in Chernobyl, winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction and one of the New York Times’ Ten Best Books of 2019.
His latest book, Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space, was published by Avid Reader Press in May this year. An immediate New York Times bestseller, Challenger is the winner of the 2024 Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction.