Richard Rhodes - The Making of the Atomic Bomb

Pros: thorough, gripping, and highly interesting

Cons: 788 pages isn't enough, I want more

Review: “In London, where Southhampton Row passes Russell Square, across from the British Museum in Bloomsbury, Leo Szilard waited irritably one gray Depression morning for the stoplight to change. A trace of rain had fallen during the night; Tuesday,...

Pros: Fantastic in every respect.

Cons: None

Review: This is a definitive work on the making of the atomic bomb. From the germ of the idea to its completion, it tracks not only the actual activities associated with making the bomb, but the policy decisions and science behind it. It is quite a long ...

Pros: A highly detailed and well-written account of the development of our most destructive technology.

Cons: May be a bit technical in spots for some readers.

Review: Richard Rhodes's The Making of the Atomic Bomb chronicles a period unique in world history, an age when brilliant minds in the service of numerous countries collaborated to create the most destructive weaponry we've yet seen, but at the same time...