Bomb

Bomb: The Race to Build-and Steal- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon

By: Steve Sheinkin

Time Line

1938

Fission discovered by Otto Hahn

December 6, 1941President Roosevelt authorizes the Manhattan Project with $2 billion to build the atom bomb.

Epilogue:"In the end, this is a difficult story to sum up. The making of the atomic bomb is one of history's most amazing examples of teamwork and genius and poise under pressure. But it's also the story of how humans created a weapon capable of wiping our species off the planet. It's a story with no end in sight.And, like it or not, you're in it." (236)

Oppenheimer met with President Truman after Hiroshima. "He lifted his trembling hands, 'Mr. President, I feel like I have blood on my hands.' Truman's eyes flashed disgust. 'Never mind,' he mumbled, 'it'll all come out in the wash.'

August 2, 1939Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President Roosevelt explaining the importance of uranium nuclear fission.

1941

Pearl Harbor Bombing

1945

July 16The Trinity Test: The First Detonation

1945

1949

August 6Bombing of Hiroshima

The Soviet Union's Successful Atomic Bomb Test

"Pearl Harbor was a turning point for Robert Oppenheimer... He decided to pour all his energy into beating Hitler in the race for the atomic bomb."

Bomb is a nonfiction book about the creation of the atomic bomb and how America used it to end WWII. Sheinkin brings the spy movies to life with real accounts of inside sources and alibis. The Soviet Union, Germany, and America use their brightest physicist to save the world from Hitler's wrath.

Robert Oppenheimer: "Father of the Atomic Bomb." The director of the Manhattan Project.