Pandora's Keepers

As I said in my last post, I've had a lot of time for reading.

How I choose my books to purchase is based on approximately three different questions:
1) Does it sound like it'll be interesting? (I've been on a science history/pop-science kick for the past few years.)
2) Is it used or on sale? (An important question for my limited budget.)
3) Will I cry due to the terrible writing or will I spasm due to over-simplifications?

Pandora's Keepers was a book that I thought sounded interesting, was on sale, and the writing seemed pleasant. For whatever reason, I left it on my shelf for about a year. When packing for the vacation, I threw it into my backpack.

When opening up this book on the plane, I was drawn in immediately and regretted leaving this book on a shelf for a full year. Brian VanDeMark has mostly written books on Vietnam, but this book centers on the drama involving the nine primary scientists who worked on the atomic bomb in the US. He paints intimate portraits of each scientist, giving the reader a chance to see the strengths and weaknesses of each personality. As I passed through the book, I felt emotionally involved in each step of the project.

It's hard to give a review that does justice to this particular book. While VanDeMark definitely has his own bias throughout the book, which is very apparent in his treatment of the Oppenheimer affair, it's difficult to fault him for this bias. He gives a fair picture of almost all of the scientists, and does a good job of weaving together a dramatic, interesting story.

The major flaw that I found with this book was at the end. VanDeMark has a chapter that is essentially his views on nuclear weapons. For whatever reason, it left a bad taste in my mouth. While his opinion on this subject is pretty clear throughout the book, I didn't enjoy his argument.

Despite this last chapter, I'd definitely recommend this book. If you're looking for an informative, interesting account of the scientists of the atomic bomb, read this book. I'll give it a 4.5/5---it would have been a 5 without the last chapter!