Stalin and the Bomb: The Soviet Union and Atomic Energy, 1939-1956

Absolutely wonderful book on a remarkably fascinating topic. Holloway makes excellent use of the information made available after the fall of the USSR. The joy of Holloway's telling of the Soviet bomb project is that it is completely scientist centric, describing what it was like to makes discoveries in the highly politicized environment of Stalin's Russia. While Holloway is very honest about the role that spying played in expiditing the
bomb for the Soviets, he is equally honest about how little the Soviet scientists themselves were aware of the information that the generals, and a few select scientists had. The role of those who were informed was not to dictate what should be done, but rather to steer spontaneously generated show more discussion towards the proven (i.e., American) path. Critical reading for anyone interested in the history of the atom bomb. show less

Solid, very well-researched and compellingly readable.