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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
Another historical novel set within a scientific theme. My favourite genre đ
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Atomic City Girls by Janet Beard
(Library book )
The year is 1944 and the place is Oak Ridge Tennessee a city that doesnât officially exist. A self contained cityâThe place is full of security check points and signs reminding everyone that they are not to talk about anything they see or do here. They are told they are doing their part to help end the war but they arenât allowed to ask specific questions. This place and this condition for working there are true. after the Japanese surrender, the workers and the rest of America will find out what was really happening there.
The book follows many characters during their time working there. Though their eyes we see their moral dilemmas, the way they coped living there, how racism still showed itâs ugly head but mainly it gives a view of what it was like to live there in that time. Itâs actually a very interesting read. Iâd recommend it.
(Library book )
The year is 1944 and the place is Oak Ridge Tennessee a city that doesnât officially exist. A self contained cityâThe place is full of security check points and signs reminding everyone that they are not to talk about anything they see or do here. They are told they are doing their part to help end the war but they arenât allowed to ask specific questions. This place and this condition for working there are true. after the Japanese surrender, the workers and the rest of America will find out what was really happening there.
The book follows many characters during their time working there. Though their eyes we see their moral dilemmas, the way they coped living there, how racism still showed itâs ugly head but mainly it gives a view of what it was like to live there in that time. Itâs actually a very interesting read. Iâd recommend it.
Overall, this was a decent book. It was not very challenging or literary, with a lot of simple sentences, but I did get into the story as I stuck with it. I enjoyed learning more about Oak Ridge through a fictional narrative, I really appreciated the added perspective of Joe to see the segregation that was there (that I hadn't even thought of until I reached his first chapter). I liked seeing Sam's internal dilemma with the science vs. the reality of the bomb, and I thought June's character was developed well. The subject matter was what brought this book up to three stars for me, despite the writing being a little juvenile.
June Walker is a young farm girl growing up in Blount County, Tennessee when WWII breaks out in Europe. Sam Cantor is a Jewish college professor in California. Joe Brewer is a African American field worker in Alabama. Cici is a a girl from Atlanta, Georgia with one goal in mind, find a rich husband and forget the poor sharecroppers family she grew up in. There lives will all be intertwined by the Manhattan Project and Dry Ridge in Tennessee. June and Cici become roommates at Dry Ridge. Their job is to turn dials and make sure they stay within a recommended range. They have no idea what they are doing but the job pays well and is easy enough and they work ten hour rotating shifts. Sam is the person overseeing Y-12 where the girls work and ensures that the machines are doing exactly what they are intended to do. Joe Brewer is part of the construction crew that works on building the factories and homes where all these workers are to live. Everything at Dry Ridge is top secret. No one is to talk about what they do, question why they are doing it and cannot share any information as to what the facility is like where they work and live. In a place such as Dry Ridge you can trust no one.
This book is well written and gives you a feel for what it was like living at Dry Ridge while the war was happening. Wonderful characters and settings helps you to understand how terribly difficult it must have been during that time.
I enjoyed this book very much. Since I have done much studying of WWII, this book took me into different areas of the war I knew about but never had a true appreciation for the deep secrecy that surrounded the Manhattan Project. I would definitely recommend this book.
This book is well written and gives you a feel for what it was like living at Dry Ridge while the war was happening. Wonderful characters and settings helps you to understand how terribly difficult it must have been during that time.
I enjoyed this book very much. Since I have done much studying of WWII, this book took me into different areas of the war I knew about but never had a true appreciation for the deep secrecy that surrounded the Manhattan Project. I would definitely recommend this book.
Disappointed in this one, gave up about halfway in. Wanted to read The Girls of Atomic City, but my parents had purchased this thinking it would be similar. Going to tell them to go with GoAC instead. The real history in this one is more my jam, especially since my grandmother spent some time there.
I didn't dislike this book, however, it also wasn't my favorite either. I enjoyed learning more about the Oak Ridge Secret City and what all went on there during WW2, but the characters themselves...I just wasn't a fan. I found them to be rather dull. June was very naive, Sam clearly an alcoholic had issues, Cici clearly had issues, and Joe, the only really normal one of the group, didn't get a lot of "action". I understand why the author wrote the storyline the way she did...but I kinda was hoping for something different.
Interesting historical fiction about the people who worked at Oak Ridge refining uranium. I found the pictures the author included interesting.
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No