A thorough examination of a complex person during extraordinary times. American Prometheus is both a fascinating exploration of J. Robert Oppenheimer and a cautionary tail of how choices can have unexpected and destructive consequences. Highly recommended. ( )

Fantastic. Relevant to both the times and myself personally. In many ways terribly depressing. A real page turner of a biography. ( )

Too dry and boring. DNF ( )

For more reviews and bookish posts visit: https://www.ManOfLaBook.com

American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin is a biography of the famous scientist, “father of the atomic bomb”. The authors won the Pulitzer Prize for this book.

I wanted to read this book for a long time, but after watching Christopher Nolan’s biopic, it made it to the top of the list. If you didn’t read the book, I found that watching the movie, then reading the book, then watching the movie once more (hopefully with subtitles) helped me understand the complex nuances of the time.

American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin is an exceptional biography which manages to weave politics, science, and humanity into an engaging story which changed the world we live in. the book skips, wisely I think, on the overly detailed technical aspects of building the atomic bomb, in favor of life in Los Alamos, and Oppenheimer’s role in it.

The book establishes Oppenheimer as a charismatic intellectual whose speaking and administrative ability led him to great success. Oppenheimer also had the curiosity to look at other subjects that had nothing to do with physics, learn, troubleshoot, or just for his own knowledge.

Much like Walter Issacson’s excellent biography of Einstein, this book is not about physics, but captures the world in which Oppenheimer lived in. The authors allow the readers to understand why he was selected to lead the Manhattan Project, his leadership and organizational capabilities, charisma, and occasional cruelty.

The book is charming on the surface but has dark undertones which are difficult to miss. At times it could be overwhelmingly detailed, however it does provide an understanding of a complex man and the company he kept. ( )

This is a remarkable biography. It grabs you from the first page to the last one. In addition to telling the story of Robert Oppenheimer and the development of the atomic bomb, it dives into the issues of thermonuclear war, the anti-communist fanaticism of the McCarthy era, and the abuse of power by Hoover and his FBI. The smear campaign against Oppenheimer in 1954 infects the reader with a feeling of paranoia.

The smear campaign against Oppenheimer continues today with a recent article in Commentary magazine declaring the Oppenheimer really was a communist. https://www.commentary.org/articles/harvey-klehr/oppenheimer-was-a-communist/?ca.... The article in Commentary is not at all persuasive The book American Prometheus, however, provides convincing arguments for way this is not true.

The efforts ( )