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mllejoyeuxnoel's review
4.0
This story was both fascinating and heartbreaking, but that’s all that is earning it four whole stars here. It’s worth reading to learn what these women suffered, but I have to say I was often distracted by the clumsy, awkward writing. As a lawyer, I was especially annoyed reading some of the author’s characterizations of legal proceedings. (FTR, “hostile witness” is a term of art and not an attorney’s personal judgment about a witness’ behavior. Rolled my eyes pretty hard at that one.) The tale itself is an extremely dramatic one, but there were so many moments where the drama was contrived. The facts spoke for themselves; we didn’t need so many italicized and offset sentences.
But anyway - as I said, I’d still recommend this one, to women especially. This history is important.
But anyway - as I said, I’d still recommend this one, to women especially. This history is important.
victoriafrost1991's review
3.0
Very interesting topic to read on the horrors of what radium can do to a person's health, the power that companies will use to get their way, the heart breaks for the loved ones and struggle to get to court. Kudos to the narrator of the Audible book in reading the book.
Anyways, what was annoying was the repetitiveness of what each girl was having wrong with her health in each chapter. It became redundant and a bit confusing. The author was trying to give faces to the women, yet, it felt like to many faces to remember, what ailment they had resulting from radium, and ehat the radium corporations were doing to stop them from following law suit. I sort of wished the author, or editor, formatted the book with the regions (i.e. Newark alone, then Ottawa alone) of the different radium companies and what happened there and then with historical back story followed by health issues then by legal. I felt like a ping pong ball trying to remember what happened.
What was odd was when the narrator was stating how much the medical bills and lawyers were costing. For example, let's say a medical bill was $200 in the 1920s then $400 without saying that it is in American dollars or present money. I assume that the two different prices provided were how much it cost in the 1920s and 1930s to modern times. Yet, in other historical books, documentary books and biographies I have read all say American dollars and what the historical price is and how much it is right now.
Anyways, what was annoying was the repetitiveness of what each girl was having wrong with her health in each chapter. It became redundant and a bit confusing. The author was trying to give faces to the women, yet, it felt like to many faces to remember, what ailment they had resulting from radium, and ehat the radium corporations were doing to stop them from following law suit. I sort of wished the author, or editor, formatted the book with the regions (i.e. Newark alone, then Ottawa alone) of the different radium companies and what happened there and then with historical back story followed by health issues then by legal. I felt like a ping pong ball trying to remember what happened.
What was odd was when the narrator was stating how much the medical bills and lawyers were costing. For example, let's say a medical bill was $200 in the 1920s then $400 without saying that it is in American dollars or present money. I assume that the two different prices provided were how much it cost in the 1920s and 1930s to modern times. Yet, in other historical books, documentary books and biographies I have read all say American dollars and what the historical price is and how much it is right now.
sedemoss's review
5.0
I'd never heard of the Radium Girls prior to reading this book. Truly a disturbing and heartbreaking story. A small amount of research gave me an even deeper understanding of the subject. This is a very well written book and adds a lot of humanity to what could have been a dry documentary style.
I thoroughly recommend this book. Not because it will brighten your life, but these women deserve to be remembered, and thought about forever.
I thoroughly recommend this book. Not because it will brighten your life, but these women deserve to be remembered, and thought about forever.