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1.65k reviews for:
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
Martin J. Sherwin, Kai Bird
4.33 AVERAGE
1.65k reviews for:
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
Martin J. Sherwin, Kai Bird
4.33 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
It says something about politicians in general, and the political system in America in particular, that you come away from this weighty and detailed biography with huge sympathy for the man who built the most destructive weapon ever used in war. A brilliant scientist and thinker, trapped by petty, ignorant men, and eventually hounded by them into reclusive retirement. Oppenheimer comes out of this as something of a hero, a man who saw the danger of what science had created and warned against it's proliferation, only to be ignored and abused - and who lived with his regret until his premature death. A true Prometheus fable of triumph and tragedy.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
challenging
informative
slow-paced
Exhaustive. Informative.
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
this was such a mountain to climb but i did find i enjoyed it. as you can probably imagine for a book this long, there’s so much shit that didn’t need to be there but i enjoyed it nonetheless.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
challenging
dark
informative
tense
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
I began to reading this on tape during a vacation after watching it in theaters. It was incredibly informative, entertaining, and highly engaging.
By far one of the bests books I’ve read in years, (and I say this despite, rarely reading non-fiction), I had only one small qualm *wink, inside joke* about this book. It does portray Oppenheimer in a very neutral light, but at times the integrity of the book’s objectivity and openness seemed to be in direct contrast in which one or perhaps both authors wanted the book to go. I think the author wanted Oppenheimer‘s affiliation with the communist part to remain a mystery, but this is defeated in a later chapter where, during the trial, Oppenheimer states frankly that he was not a formal member but affiliated heavily because of his political alignment with party values at the time. This and the fact that sometimes I felt the book seemed, at times, to try and influence the readers thoughts towards a situation were the only minor isssues I had.
The prose was fantastic, the amount of research that must have gone into this astounding, and the evidence presented seamlessly. Although it is non-fiction it reads so incredibly smoothly, I am beyond impressed.
By far one of the bests books I’ve read in years, (and I say this despite, rarely reading non-fiction), I had only one small qualm *wink, inside joke* about this book. It does portray Oppenheimer in a very neutral light, but at times the integrity of the book’s objectivity and openness seemed to be in direct contrast in which one or perhaps both authors wanted the book to go. I think the author wanted Oppenheimer‘s affiliation with the communist part to remain a mystery, but this is defeated in a later chapter where, during the trial, Oppenheimer states frankly that he was not a formal member but affiliated heavily because of his political alignment with party values at the time. This and the fact that sometimes I felt the book seemed, at times, to try and influence the readers thoughts towards a situation were the only minor isssues I had.
The prose was fantastic, the amount of research that must have gone into this astounding, and the evidence presented seamlessly. Although it is non-fiction it reads so incredibly smoothly, I am beyond impressed.