Rating: 
Summary: Worth reading more than once!
Review: As a teacher of physics at the secondary level, I found this book to be an excellent source of information for an interdisciplinary unit I did with a colleague in the Social Studies department. Teaching the history of one's discipline is of paramount importance. When students see two teachers working together, they are more likely to see the relevance of each content area.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent - everyone should read this book
Review: This is a big book (almost 800 pages), covering the history of atomic physics from late the 19th century discoveries of the atomic nucleus and radiation to the 1945 atomic bomb strikes and the immediate post-war developments. The most amazing part of the story concerns the (almost unbelieveable) rapidity of scientific advance in this field during the early 19th century -- then again, perhaps people 75 years from now will be saying the same about computer or DNA knowledge during our era (I'm certain the same won't be said of my field).I enjoyed this book, and recommend it highly. Anybody with a rudimentary understanding of nuclear physics (e.g., who can understand the meaning of the terms electron/ neutron/ proton) and early 20th century history will have no problem with this book. I gave it 4 stars out of 5, because I reserve 5 stars for books that, when I'm finished, I wish would continue: this is a very fine book, but I was ready to move on by the end. If I were the author, I would have included a section on the long-term costs of the US atomic program -- i.e., the environmental cleanup costs we are paying today as a consequence of the "victory now at any cost" mindset of 50 years ago (yeah, I know, I just implied that it's already too long -- but it really isn't).
Rating:
Summary: Reads like a novel...
Review: From the first paragraph (see below), it is obvious that this is an exceptional work. It reads like a novel, but goes deeper into the nature of reality than any novel can ever hope to. Read this book for the story and gain a first class education in physics, history, history of science and the politics of the past century. While I was reading this book, during my long nights operating the world's largest telescope, visiting astronomers would continuously pick up the book and begin reading... more than one went to the web and bought their own copies when I asked for mine back. This is as good as non-fiction gets. "In London, where Southhampton Row passes Russell Square, across from the British Museum in Bloombury, Leo Szilard waited irritably one gray Depression morning for the stoplight to change. A trace of rain had fallen during the night; Tuesday, September 12, 1933, dawned cool, humid and dull. Drizzling rain would begin in early afternoon. When Slizard told the story later he never mentioned his destination that morning. He may have had none; he often walked to think. In any case another another destination intervened. The stoplight changed to green. Slizard stepped off the curb. As he crossed the street time craked open before him and he saw a way to the future, death into the world and all our woe, the shape of things to come."
Rating:
Summary: Question Regarding Book...
Review: This book is an outstanding account of the years leading up to the building of the atomic bomb. Although I have not finished the book yet, I have some questions regarding this book for those that have read or are reading this book? 1). page 197 paper back edition - "....at 3 a.m. a car with a couple of S.A. men" - what does S.A. men refer to? 2). page 316 - with many others "DTM" - I think it is "Carnegie Institution of Washington Department of Terrestrial Magnetism" Great Book....
Rating:
Summary: Thriller
Review: Probably the best History & Science book ever written. Rhodes has provided very intimate details about the scientists and a very honest potrayal of the project. A must read. Readers might want to brush up some basic physics before embarking on this thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect
Review: Simply put, this book is the perfect layman's and not-so-layman's reference on the atomic bomb. It captivatess the whole thing with a sweeping tale, but don't let that fool you...there is so much knowledge and attention to detail in here it is astounding. I am on my third read of it in the past two years.
Rating:
Summary: Authentic 5 Stars
Review: The readers that proclaim a 5 Star rating are on the money with this one. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, versed in the theories of physics, but I was enthralled by this story of achievement. Outstanding!
Rating:
Summary: required reading - AND utterly captivating
Review: Everyone seeking to understand the 20th century, its history, its politics, its scientific development, must read this book. Not only does it illuminate one of the foundational events of our time far better than any other source, it definitively sets forth modern science, its ethical dilemmas, its odd combination of unbelievable explanatory power and the utterly (humanly) unfathomable reality science suggests. Rhodes traces the development of the atomic bomb to its scientific roots, which he demonstrates are inextricably intertwined with the people pushing the scientific developments at an ever increasing speed and for a long time had no idea of the potential their theories carried. Rhodes manages to do all this with complete lucidity, allowing the reader totally unfamiliar with quantum mechanics to follow along with reasonable comprehension. At the same time, the psychological, ethical and political dramas Rhodes describes make this the hands-down most thrilling, most exciting book I have ever read
Rating:
Summary: A Further Contemplation
Review: A visit to Los Alamos began an odyssey of sorts. It was the first book about the Bomb and the Project I read. I should have stopped there. Nothing since (and I have read, at last count, not less than ten) approach the scope, insight, or sheer shine of the tapestry Rhodes wove...
Rating:
Summary: excellently written and captivating
Review: I had to read this book for a class on the history of the making of the atomic bomb.It was probably the best book I have ever read. Rhodes treats us all to the entire history of the bomb from the physics to the political and social need for such a device to be created, tot he aftermath of creating the bomb. The physics he included were important for us history majors who havent taken physics for a while. He capitvates the history of this through all of the aspects. He introduces us to the great minds of physics and how they turn from wanting to create sucha device to never wanting to use it. This book should be a MUST for all WWII classes and college US history classes. It is important that we learn about the past and the device that plunged us into this modern era.
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