Atomic: The First War of Physics and the Secret History of the Atom Bomb 1939-49

Rich in personality, action, confrontation and deception, Atomic is the first fully realised popular account of the race to build humankind's most destructive weapon. The book draws on declassified material, such as MI6's Farm Hall transcripts, coded Soviet messages cracked by American cryptographers in the Venona project, and interpretations by Russian scholars of documents from the Soviet archives. Jim Baggott weaves these threads into a monumental book that spans ten historic years, from the discovery of nuclear fission in 1939 to the aftermath of Joe-1 , August 1949's first Soviet atomic bomb test. Why did physicists persist in developing the atomic bomb, despite the devastation that it could bring? Why, despite having a clear head start, did Hitler's physicists fail? Could the Soviets have developed the bomb without spies like Klaus Fuchs or Donald Maclean? Did the Allies really plot to assassinate a key member of the German bomb programme? Did the physicists knowingly inspire the arms race? Atomic is an epic story of science and technology at the very limits of human understanding; a tale barely believable as fiction, which just happens to be historical fact.

About the Author :
Jim Baggott is an award-winning science writer. A former academic chemist, he runs an independent management consultancy practice and maintains a broad interest in science, philosophy and history. He continues to write on these subjects in his spare time for New Scientist magazine, among other publications. His previous books have been widely acclaimed and include A Beginner's Guide to Reality (Penguin, 2005) and Beyond Measure: Modern Physics, Philosophy and the Meaning of Quantum Theory (OUP, 2004).

Review :
‘I [have] read everything on the subject that I could lay my hands on, but I never read such a good, comprehensive account as Jim Baggott’s… Highly recommended.’ 'High drama… fascinating reading.’ ‘Grimly compelling. Thorough and accessible.’ ‘The best popular science book of the year to date by far.’ ‘Baggott’s investigation is an accessible account of the race to build the world’s first atomic weapons. Compelling.’ ‘Atomic is the tale of the creation of the Atomic bomb during wartime, and the political fallout from the realization of these powerful weapons… Most importantly Atomic is about the people and personalities behind the bomb… It’s a disturbing book – simply because it’s a very disturbing story.’ ‘Comprehensive and clear-flowing book by Jim Baggott… the real nub of this thriller of a book: the human brain is the thing that fills you wit fearful awe.’ ‘This is an excellent example of popular science, explaining a series of difficult concepts clearly and coherently, but without sacrificing accuracy. When combined with the personal stories of the scientists the result is an excellent study of the development of the first atomic bomb.’ ‘Jim Baggott’s clear, elegant prose never falters, whether unveiling the scientists and spies who raced to unlock the secrets of the atom bomb, or describing the sub-atomic particle which drove the physicists on to what J Robert Oppenheimer later called 'sin'.’