Nayberg’s narrator is resilient, funny and ironic, observing her surroundings with an artist’s probing eye. . . . Her story gracefully brings to life the Soviet world—torn down in 1991 and recently resurrected by the latest Russian dictator—provoking thorny questions about different approaches to art, the cost of trying to conform and the complexity of family ties.
—The New York Times
Nayberg’s watercolor and collage art brilliantly mirrors Genya’s emotional landscape. . . . Nayberg’s depictions of her mother . . . and of friend dynamics feel wholly authentic, while the portrayal of Soviet-era antisemitism, environmental catastrophe, and casual cruelties never overwhelms the intimate story of a girl finding her voice through art amid chaos. An utterly unforgettable, achingly honest, and spectacularly crafted graphic memoir.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)`
Nayberg’s voice creates an easy connection with history and Genya’s culture while still resonating with the familiar perspectives and priorities of contemporary 11-year- olds. So, too, the art finds a way to hold both the deceptively simplified forms of a child’s art along with a scope, accuracy of environments, and palette that offers immediacy and nuance.
—Booklist (starred review)
[A] powerful graphic novel memoir. . . . The creator plants subtle hints about the social and political pressures of living in the U.S.S.R. . . . Frenetic snarls of scribbled pencil strokes—visible beneath muted watercolor and collage artwork produced on paper that seems purposefully creased—suggest that confusion and unrest lie beneath idyllic slice-of-life depictions of Nayberg’s childhood, and emphasize the narrative’s contrasting tones.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Dry, self-aware, and occasionally absurd humor punctuates the uncertainty without diminishing its gravity. Nayberg deftly interweaves earlier memories of Cold War events, sharpening historical context without sacrificing narrative momentum. . . . [A] resonant account of perseverance, artistic identity, and learning to move through life—and ‘other disasters.’
—The Horn Book (starred review)
Nayberg’s art makes subtle but striking growth as the book progresses. . . . A strong and beautifully rendered addition to graphic memoir and nonfiction middle grade collections.
—School Library Journal
The art is exceptional, a mostly washed-out palette of city tones with occasional lush full-page representations of the beauty of Kyiv. Much is told in dramatic body postures within the panels, sometimes mirroring and often exaggerating the text. . . . Genya’s pre-art school coming-of-age story is well-told, memorable, and historically resonant on its own.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
The book’s own art is stylized and lovely, whether portraying dreamy Kiev cityscapes or reflecting subtle differences among children’s drawings. Humor and childhood charm are also a feature. . . .
—Foreword Reviews
Far and away a favorite of the year. . . . If Picasso were to live today and took it into his head to write a graphic novel memoir, he might produce something akin to what Nayberg is pulling off here. . . . Books of this sort are rare jewels. When I read one I immediately wish that I had twenty more like it. . . . Odd and honest, this humanizes the past brilliantly. Like nothing else out there, and that’s worth something in and of itself.
—Betsy Bird, Collections Manager of Evanston Public Library
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
Nayberg’s younger self longs to be a professional artist. Chernobyl, Life, and Other Disasters makes it clear that she reached her goal—with a gorgeously illustrated graphic novel about growing up under the shadow the Chernobyl disaster, deeply empathic and bursting with humor and personality. I loved it so. Genya is an artist to be reckoned with.
—New York Times–bestselling author-illustrator Lisa Brown
This middle grade graphic memoir never loses sight of the kid at its heart. At once singular and universal, Chernobyl, Life, and Other Disasters powerfully demonstrates that there’s nothing quite like the fallout—of being eleven years old.
—Joshua S. Levy, National Jewish Book Award–winning author of Finn and Ezra’s Bar Mitzvah Time Loop
Yevgenia Nayberg’s Chernobyl, Life, and Other Disasters focuses on one specific part of a young person’s life, yet deftly weaves in current events and family dynamics. The book is full of magic—the writing and drawing seems almost dreamlike, but anecdotes and sequences are carefully arranged to fall right into place. The color palette is muted but still somehow lively, with sketchier illustrations alongside more fully rendered art. To top it all off, the book made me laugh, especially with the constant theme of the word ‘banal.’ Bravo, Genya!
—Malaka Gharib, journalist and Arab American Book Award-winning author of I Was Their American Dream
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