We continue our occasional series previewing good reads for young adults from Katherine Farmer, Coordinator of the Racers Children's Preview Collection at Murray State University. This week's recommended read is "Bomb: The Race to Build - And Steal - The World's Most Dangerous Weapon" by Steve Sheinkin. This nonfiction book tells the story of how the atomic bomb came to be - and how it came to be used. Critics have called this book a 'must read,' 'a complicated thriller that intercuts action with the deftness of a Hollywood blockbuster.
Bomb: The Race to Build –And Steal- The World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Nonfiction – Ages 10 and up Newbery Honor, Sibert Medal, YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, finalist for the National Book Award.
August 6, 1945, is a date that will forever be remembered in history. The day the United States of America dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan and changed the course of World War II. But how did America get to point of being able to create and deploy an atomic bomb. That is the subject of the 2013 Newbery Honor and finalist for the National Book Award Bomb: The Race to Build –And Steal- The World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin. In this work of nonfiction, Sheinkin explores the path to creating and acquiring the atomic bomb through the three paths that lead to the final development on that fateful day.
It all began in late 1938, when a German chemist Otto Hahn discovered the ability to split the atoms of uranium. From that point, the Americans were secretly attempting to build the bomb, the Soviets were trying to steal the work of the Americans, and the Americans were attempting to stop the Germans from developing the bomb themselves. Accompanied with photographs, Sheinkin uses the personal accounts of all involved to interweave the story from the accounts of the spy to the theoretical physicist to create a story worth reading.
To discover more about the path to change the future of the world, read Bomb: The Race to Build –And Steal- The World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin.