Download Popular Titles Audiobooks in History, 20th Century

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Americans Against the City

Subtitle: Anti-Urbanism in the Twentieth Century

Author: Steven Conn

Narrator: Kevin Stillwell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 hrs and 27 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-03-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 16 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

It is a paradox of American life that we are a highly urbanized nation filled with people deeply ambivalent about urban life. An aversion to urban density and all that it contributes to urban life, and a perception that the city was the place where "big government" first took root in America fostered what historian Steven Conn terms the "anti-urban impulse." In response, anti-urbanists called for the decentralization of the city, and rejected the role of government in American life in favor of a return to the pioneer virtues of independence and self-sufficiency.

In this provocative and sweeping audiobook, Conn explores the anti-urban impulse across the 20th century, examining how the ideas born of it have shaped both the places in which Americans live and work, and the anti-government politics so strong today. Beginning in the booming industrial cities of the Progressive era at the turn of the 20th century, where debate surrounding these questions first arose, Conn examines the progression of anti-urban movements. He describes the decentralist movement of the 1930s, the attempt to revive the American small town in the mid-century, the anti-urban basis of urban renewal in the 1950s and '60s, and the Nixon administration's program of building new towns as a response to the urban crisis, illustrating how, by the middle of the 20th century, anti-urbanism was at the center of the politics of the New Right.

Concluding with an exploration of the New Urbanist experiments at the turn of the 21st century, Conn demonstrates the full breadth of the anti-urban impulse, from its inception to the present day. Engagingly written, thoroughly researched, and forcefully argued, Americans Against the City is important for anyone who cares not just about the history of our cities, but about their future as well.

Members Reviews:

Useful historical reading for interpreting the hatred of cities that is a defining feature of the Trump Administration.

A historical primer on the varied forms of political hatred directed at cities, through the 20th Century, by both political parties. Useful context for interpreting the profound hatred of cities that drives Republicans, in general, and Donald Trump, in particular.

A thorough, entertaining romp through the genealogy of American ...

A thorough, entertaining romp through the genealogy of American ideology towards the enduringly hard-to-define category of "The City." Well-written, witty, engaging, informative.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Captured Honor

Subtitle: POW Survival in the Philippines and Japan

Author: Bob Wodnik

Narrator: Emil Nicholas Gallina

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-28-14

Publisher: University Press Audiobooks

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Author Bob Wodnik has masterfully compiled the stories of several World War II prisoners-of-war into a non-fiction historical work with the feel of a novel. Listeners glimpse the unrelenting physical agony and mental anguish of these young heroes as they struggle for survival, and then, following years of captivity, make the difficult and awkward return to civilization.

Intertwined throughout these gripping descriptions are letters hoarded by a quiet night clerk at the seedy Strand Hotel in Everett, Washington, that supply a counterpoint of hometown life back in the states. The patriotism, the rationing, the blackouts, and the missing loved ones all indelibly altered those left stateside, and provide insight into a generation of Americans.

Critic Reviews:

"Beautifully written. The author demonstrates an ability to blend dialogue, letters, and narrative into a seamless fabric." (Stephen Balzarini, PhD, Associate Professor of History, Gonzaga University)

"The author has an uncanny ability to capture in words the experiences of ex-POWs." (Tom Thompson, former U.S. Army officer)

Members Reviews:

Great book

Fantastic book, a great & powerful read, highly recommended...

Great book

We knew the author. Gave it to our cousin who is researching an Uncle who spent time in a POW camp in Japan during WWII. This is a great book.

Five Stars

Look forward to reading this one.

This book is great!

This book was written by my friends Grandfather who actually lived this story. Many things you didn't hear in History books.

Style, research, outstanding writing!

Wodnik is an outstanding writer and his research is meticulous. My father and 4 uncles grew up in Oakesdale and were best friends with Jack Elkins, one of the main characters of Captured Honor. Four of those boys went through experiences similar to those of Mr. Elkins. As detailed in my book Buckshot Pie, A Family's Struggle Through Homesteading, The Great Depression, and World War II ([...] two of those brothers survived prison camp and one of those survived the Battle of Bataan, the Bataan Death March and 30 months of Imperial Japanese internment on Luzon, but died aboard the Hokusen Maru hellship. Wodnik's account of the hellships mirrors that of Ernie Loy and Nels Quast who shared those 1st-hand tragic memories with my grandmother and our family. There are several horrendous naratives in Captured Honor that may be difficult to absorb or believe, but they are true and documented in this book and they've been documented - the same true stories - by hundreds of survivors. Like Jack Elkins, many of the Bataan Death March survivors wouldn't talk about their experiences for fifty years, but the stories eventually came out and they told of incredible pain, suffering, disease, torture, and slavery by the Imperial Forces. Everyone should read this account! Captured Honor: Pow Survival in the Philippines and Japan

Additionally, Jack Elkins has shared his stories with me and moved me to the appreciation of all those young men. If one wonders why Tom Brokaw calls them "the greatest generation", Bob Wodnik's account will answer that question.

Escuche este audio libro completo gratis en https://hotaudiobook.com

Título: Breve historia del Holocausto

Autor: Ramon Espanyol

Narrador: Oscar Chamorro Osa

Formato: Unabridged

Duración: 8 hrs and 12 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 08-12-14

Editor: Audible Studios

Calificaciones: 4.5 de 5 de 11 votos

Categorías: History, 20th Century

Resumen del editor:

Un panorama completo, descrito hasta sus más crueles detalles, de la mayor monstruosidad de la historia de la humanidad. El 20 de enero de 1942, en Villa Marlier, junto al lago Wannsee, miembros de las SS, de la GESTAPO, del ejército y del gobierno nazi, se reúnen para debatir sobre lo que ellos llamaron, con un terrorífico eufemismo, la "cuestión judía". El resultado de la reunión es el de llevar a cabo la "solución Final". Nuevamente, bajo un eufemismo se esconde el horror absoluto: el exterminio físico de toda la población judía de Alemania y del resto de países germanizados. Así, toda la ingeniería nazi se pone a trabajar perfeccionando un sistema de exterminio que, en lugares como Auschwitz, llegaría a acabar con 10.000 judíos diarios.

La tarea que se propone llevar a cabo Ramón Espanyol en Breve Historia del Holocausto es presentar el Holocausto judío sin escatimar nada del horror pero desde una perspectiva novedosa, ya que no sólo se centra en la masacre, sino que amplía el panorama remontándose a las causas iniciales y llevando el tema hasta la actualidad. Explica el incipiente antisemitismo alemán desde la frustración nacional tras la I Guerra Mundial, esa frustración sería una de las causas del ascenso al poder de los nazis, que desde un primer momento empezaron a reprimir todas las diferencias sociales, políticas y culturales. La II Guerra Mundial acelera la toma de decisiones ya que los alemanes son incapaces de contener más prisioneros de la Europa del Este, es entonces cuando se decide abordar la "cuestión judía".

El autor no sólo presentará las matanzas en Auschwitz, Belzec y Treblinka con todo su dramatismo, sino que nos llevará a los Juicios de Núremberg y a la fundación del estado de Israel que son consecuencias directas del exterminio.Un trabajo completo que explica el Holocausto de manera concisa y accesible.

Please Note: This audiobook is in Spanish.

Opiniones de los miembros:

Excelente libro, muy bien documentado.

Where does Breve historia del Holocausto rank among all the audiobooks youve listened to so far?

El libro merece 5 estrellas, igual que el de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, es un libro excelentemente bien realizado, sin juicios, bien documentado, fundamentado en evidencias.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Todo el libro me gustó, sobre todo del capítulo 4 en adelante, me apasionó. Me fui imaginando cada parte.

What aspect of Oscar Chamorro Osas performance would you have changed?

EL narrador es muy bueno, da énfasis donde se debe. Lo que cambiaría es que el audio tiene varios defectos, es importante cuidar éstos detalles.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Me hizo llorar en varias partes, sobre todo por ser un hecho histórico real.

Any additional comments?

Recomiendo éste libro acompañado del libro La segunda Guerra Mundial. Pienso que éste tipo de libros deberían ser literatura básica para los jóvenes desde Educación Media Superior. ayuda a incrementar tu cultura de una forma muy entretenida.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Made in Hanford

Author: Hill Williams

Narrator: Sean Schroeder

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-11-14

Publisher: University Press Audiobooks

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 37 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

At an isolated location along the Columbia River in 1944, the world's first plutonium factory became operational, producing fuel for the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, during World War II. Former Seattle Times science writer Hill Williams traces the amazing, tragic story - from the dawn of nuclear science to Cold War testing in the Marshall Islands.

The book is published by Washington State University Press.

Members Reviews:

Interesting but dry

This is a very interesting story about an important historical time. The author did a great job of documenting the events. At times the book does sound like a list of facts though. I think it would have been more interesting to hear about the important people's lives and how they interacted. A good book regardless.

Good historical read

What made the experience of listening to Made in Hanford the most enjoyable?

I live in the area and found the truth not always available here. Interesting information about process of establishing the Handford site.

Have you listened to any of Sean Schroeders other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is the second book I have heard narrated by Sean Schroeder, both have been "good listens"

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My mother was a "down winder" effected by radiation releases from Hanford as a teen and young adult. The casual disregard for damaging impacts to citizens demonstrated by the Handford administration in their frantic efforts to develop the bomb continue to this day.

Revealing review of the birth of the Atomic Bomb

Where does Made in Hanford rank among all the audiobooks youve listened to so far?

Near the top. If you like history and an exceptional "behind the scene" perspective, you will enjoy this book. Williams covers all aspect of the bomb's development from the accidental discovery of Plutonium to the extreme security matters put into place.

Who was your favorite character and why?

General Grove, the controversial leader of the project, most responsible for making theory into fact. Not sure that i would enjoy a social evening with him, but I would definitely want him running a project that had to be accomplished, despite any obstacles.

Which character as performed by Sean Schroeder was your favorite?

As the narrator, Schroeder handles all of the characters and the story perfectly. This is a fact-filled book that could easily degenerate into dull, esoteric rhetoric. Schroeder keeps his enthusiasm from the first page to the last.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Awe and amazement of the accomplishment in such a short period, It is even more amazing that we did not have a devastating explosion during development as no one really knew what they were doing or the dangers involved.

Horrible Narration

The writing isn't the best. It jumps around time wise but the narration makes the whole thing worse. It sounds like the longest sentence in history. The whole time I kept wondering why the narrator was so angry. He must have been very angry about the contract he was working under, or at the author, or at his boss, or at his wife, or at something because he murdered this story with his awful narration. I've added him to my Bad Narrators list.

Very scientific.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Rescuer

Author: Dara Horn

Narrator: Diane Piron-Gelman

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-01-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In 1941, a young Harvard-educated classicist named Varian Fry arrived in occupied France on a daring mission to rescue more than 2,000 of Europe's leading writers, artists, and intellectuals from the Nazis. Hounded by the Gestapo, he smuggled Marchel Duchamp, Marc Chagall, Hannah Arendt and dozens of other 20th century cultural luminaries out of France and brought them to America. So why did even the people Fry saved want to forget him?

In this fascinating psychological profile, acclaimed novelist Dara Horn, chosen by Granta magazine as one of the 25 best young novelists in America, follows the peculiar life and legacy of an American Oskar Schindler. In the process, she reveals the secrets of a man who risked his life when others were silent - and the unforeseen consequences, personal and cultural, of his bravery.

Members Reviews:

I Liked It

In this essay, Dara Horn probed the life of the almost-unknown Varian Fry, rescuer of famous Jewish persons from Nazi Europe. Not only did Horn explore Fry's life, his heroic rescue of more than 2,000 Jewish "priests" of Europe's high culture, and his neglect years later by those saved, she also revisited questions regarding the nature of evil and the people who fight evil: what "oddity" in Varian Fry drove him to rescue people unrelated to his life? Why do world cultures seem to value their shiny cultural achievements over goodness? Horn emphasizes the need for all of us to value the prophets of basic human decency: the Ezekiels, the people who see and try to stop (in their small brave ways) approaching evil.

Thoughtful and disturbing.

A wonderfully told story about an American Saint (frail and broken) who risked his life for the people and ideas he loved.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: American Girls, Beer, and Glenn Miller

Subtitle: GI Morale in World War II

Author: James J. Cooke

Narrator: Richard Teimer

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-30-14

Publisher: University Press Audiobooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

As World War II dawned in Europe, General George C. Marshall, the new Army Chief of Staff, had to acknowledge that American society - and the citizens who would soon become soldiers - had drastically changed in the previous few decades. Almost every home had a radio, movies could talk, and driving in an automobile to the neighborhood soda fountain was part of everyday life. A product of newly created mass consumerism, the soldier of 1940 had expectations of material comfort, even while at war. Historian James J. Cooke presents the first comprehensive look at how Marshall's efforts to cheer soldiers far from home resulted in the enduring morale services that the Army provides still today.

Marshall understood that civilian soldiers provided particular challenges and wanted to improve the subpar morale services that had been provided to Great War doughboys. Frederick Osborn, a civilian intellectual, was called to head the newly formed morale branch, which quickly became the Special Services Division. Hundreds of on-post movie theaters showing first-run movies at reduced prices, service clubs where GIs could relax, and inexpensive cafeterias were constructed. The Army Exchange System took direction under Brigadier General Joseph Byron, offering comfort items at low prices; the PX sold everything from cigarettes and razor blades to low-alcohol beer in very popular beer halls.

The great civic organizations - the YMCA, the Salvation Army, the Jewish Welfare Board, and others - were brought together to form the United Service Organizations (USO). At USO Camp Shows, admired entertainers like Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and Frances Langford brought home-style entertainment to soldiers within the war zones.

The Special Services Division, PX, and USO were crucial elements in maintaining GI morale, and Cookes work makes clear the lasting legacy of these efforts to boost the average soldiers spirits almost a century ago.

Critic Reviews:

"Cooke uses numerous archival, primary, and secondary sources to explain the importance of positive morale to the war effort, and how the combined activities of the army and private initiative helped maintain that necessary ingredient to victory." (CHOICE)

"Cooke's examination of the Special Services and PX System during World War II, a subject previously overlooked by scholars, shows that these goods and services kept the armed forces' spirits up under the alienating conditions of global war." (Dennis Showalter, author of Patton and Rommel: Men of War in the Twentieth Century)

Members Reviews:

Five Stars

Great birthday gift. They love it!

Keeping Uncle Sam's Nephews (and Nieces) Happy During World War II

A summary of the review on StrategyPage.Com:

'Prof. Cooke (Missouri) follows up his "Chewing Gum, Candy Bars, and Beer," about the U.S. Armyâs PX system in WW II, by looking at the armyâs efforts to promote and sustain morale during the conflict. He begins, however, with a review of how morale was maintained in the nationâs earlier wars, a matter that prior to the First World War was primarily left to private civilian initiative and some social organizations. In this work he looks at the PX system, the Stage Door Canteens, the USO and the many private groups helping to keep morale up, such as the many entertainers who often gave performances literally at the front.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Cowboys and Indies

Subtitle: The Epic History of the Record Industry

Author: Gareth Murphy

Narrator: Ralph Lister

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-17-14

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 32 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Cowboys and Indies is the definitive record-business bible, chronicling the pioneers who set the stylus on the most important labelsand musical discoveries of the last century. The narrative follows all the musical trends and developments from the phonograph to the Internet age as it delves behind the big business of corporate hit machines and the diligent industry of small, curated labels. Drawing from memoirs, archives, and over 100 exclusive interviews with legends of the record industry - including the founders and CEOs of Virgin, United Artists, Atlantic, and A&M Records - this book reveals the secrets behind the hit-making craft.

Cowboys and Indies focuses on the game changers - the indie founders, talent scouts, legendary A&R men - believers who understood the music business was two distinct parts: first music, then business. An industry insider himself, Gareth Murphy culls numerous behind-the-scenes anecdotes to bring together a clear genealogical map of the record industrys 130-year international history. Among its revelations, Cowboys and Indies highlights the remarkable similarities between the industry crash of the 1920sand 30s and the recent CD crash.

Witty and evocative, Cowboys and Indies offers a fresh panoramic view of the cycles and grooves of pop music and is sure to top the charts with music industry classics like Hitmaker and The Mansion on the Hill.

Members Reviews:

Epic, yet incomplete.

I would agree with Gareth Murphy's subtitle. There is an epic story of the record industry to be told. Unfortunately, after finishing this book, it seems like it's still waiting for someone to tell it. While this book makes an attempt, it's too rock-centric (and Euro-centric) to really live up to the title. Specifically, this books treads the well worn path from hippy idealism to Reagan era greed to the exclusion of much more than a passing glance at much else.

Things start off well enough with a history of the invention of recorded sound, which should be a book itself with all the characters and intrigue there, leading to the birth of the recording industry. I really liked this early part of the book and it gave me high hopes for what was to come. Things move along briskly, maybe too much so, until the beginning of Beatlemania and that is where the problems begin.

What follows is the meat of the book and a lot of the same faces and same stories that if you've read much about the recording industry you will already know. As the "sharks" take over, we learn David Geffen is a high-strung diva. Casablanca was a hedonistic wonderland. Walter Yetnikoff yells a lot. Etc., etc., etc. Murphy really focuses deeply on the already very well documented time period between 1966 and 1986. Then everyone gets bought up, Nirvana happens, then the Backstreet Boys, then Napster, then EMI is broken up and then a very bizarre and rambling final chapter.

Along the way, a lot falls through the cracks. Seminal jazz and r&b labels such as Stax, Blue Note, Savoy, Prestige, Chess, Modern, etc., are only mentioned in passing, if at all (most of the labels Ive named aren't even mentioned.) Hip-hop is reduced to Tommy Boy records, Rick Rubin's story and a sentence or two about Sugar Hill Records. Country music is all but absent entirely.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Stubby the War Dog

Subtitle: The True Story of World War I's Bravest Dog

Author: Ann Bausum

Narrator: Andrea Gallo

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-13-14

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 8 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

The story of a dog so brave he saved lives and won hearts. This is the true heart-warming story of Stubby, a small, stump-tailed terrier who fought alongside Allied forces on the Western Front during World War I. This brave and clever dog could detect enemy soldiers, impending gas attacks, and even salute higher-ranking officers! But even more, this is the story of the remarkable friendship between an American soldier named Robert Conroy and the stray who adopted him and his unit.

Members Reviews:

Brilliantly executed novel about a wonderful doggie that saved a ...

Brilliantly executed novel about a wonderful doggie that saved a soldier's life and mine as well. This book was perfect to get me past a very rough time in my life. Highly recommended!!!!

but truly a good story about mans best

ok reading...but truly a good story about mans best friend

WW1 WOW!

Discovered fascinating facts I never knew about WW1! Great story; great read!

This is just one of the best books! I love the part where Stubby would ...

This is just one of the best books! I love the part where Stubby would help the medics find wounded soldiers and would stay by a dying soldier until he passed from this life to the next. I loved the part where Stubby helped capture an enemy soldier. There's nothing in the world quite like the love and loyalty of a good dog and this is an encouraging and well-written account.

Five Stars

Interesting book.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: 50 Children

Subtitle: One Ordinary American Couple's Extraordinary Rescue Mission into the Heart of Nazi Germany

Author: Steven Pressman

Narrator: Robert Fass

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-22-14

Publisher: HarperAudio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 35 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Two ordinary Americans.

Fifty innocent lives.

One unforgettable journey.

In early 1939, few Americans were thinking about the darkening storm clouds over Europe. Nor did they have much sympathy for the growing number of Jewish families that were increasingly threatened and brutalized by Adolf Hitler's policies in Germany and Austria.

But one ordinary American couple decided that something had to be done. Despite overwhelming obstacles - both in Europe and in the United States - Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus made a bold and unprecedented decision to travel into Nazi Germany in an effort to save a group of Jewish children.

Fewer than 1,200 unaccompanied children were allowed into the United States throughout the entire Holocaust, in which 1.5 million children perished. The 50 children saved by the Krauses turned out to be the single largest group of unaccompanied children brought to America.

Drawing from Eleanor Kraus's unpublished memoir, rare historical documents, and interviews with more than a dozen of the surviving children, and illustrated with period photographs, archival materials, and memorabilia, 50 Children is a remarkable tale of personal courage and triumphant heroism that offers a fresh, unique insight into a critical period of history.

Members Reviews:

I didn't want it to end

This story is the rare combination of history, action, suspense, and pulling at your heart strings. Add the facts that it's a true story that is super well researched and well written and it's the perfect book.

I learned a ton about the early invasion of Austria by the Nazi's. Fascinating details unfolded as the story progressed. Along with all the new historical facts filling my brain, I was rooting for the good guys, booing for the bad guys, and crying during the touching moments.

As the story started to wrap-up, I didn't want it to end. I wanted to hear every detail about the lives of everyone I had met in this great novel.

This book delivers. I loved it and recommend it.

inspiring

Listening to this book, I couldn't help but think about the Muslim refugees fleeing war and being denied entry to the US. This couple and the people who helped were truly amazing....

Kansas reader

Did not enjoy reading about the vacations, first class accommodations of M/M Kraus and fashion choices made by Mrs. Kraus. The true heroes/heroines are the parents of the 50 refugee children. The success of this endeavor by all involved is measured by the fulfilling lives that the majority of the children grew up and experienced.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Age of Radiance

Subtitle: The Epic Rise and Dramatic Fall of the Atomic Era

Author: Craig Nelson

Narrator: George Newbern

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-25-14

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 63 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

From the New York Times best-selling author of Rocket Men and the award-winning biographer of Thomas Paine comes the first complete history of the Atomic Age, a brilliant, magisterial account of the men and women who uncovered the secrets of the nucleus, brought its power to America, and ignited the 20th century.

When Marie Curie, Enrico Fermi, and Edward Teller forged the science of radioactivity, they created a revolution that arced from the end of the 19th century, through the course of World War II and the Cold War of superpower brinksmanship, to our own 21st-century confrontation with the dangers of nuclear power and proliferation - a history of paradox, miracle, and nightmare. While nuclear science improves our everyday lives - from medicine to microwave technology - radiations invisible powers can trigger cancer and cellular mayhem. Writing with a biographers passion, Craig Nelson unlocks one of the great mysteries of the universe in a work that is tragic, triumphant, and above all, fascinating.

From the discovery of X-rays in the 1890s, through the birth of nuclear power in an abandoned Chicago football stadium, to the bomb builders of Los Alamos and the apocalyptic Dr. Strangelove era, Nelson illuminates a pageant of fascinating historical figures: Marie and Pierre Curie, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Franklin Roosevelt, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Harry Truman, Curtis LeMay, John F. Kennedy, Robert McNamara, Ronald Reagan, and Mikhail Gorbachev, among others. He reveals how brilliant Jewish scientists fleeing Hitler transformed America from a nation that created lightbulbs and telephones into one that split atoms; how the most grotesque weapon ever invented could realize Alfred Nobels lifelong dream of global peace; and how, in our time, emergency workers and low-level utility employees fought to contain run-amok nuclear reactors while wondering if they would live or die.

Radiance defies our common-sense views of nature, with its staggering amounts of energy flowing from seemingly inert rock and matter pulsing in half-lives that transforms into other states over the course of decades or in the blink of an eye. Radiation is as scary a word as cancer, but its the power that keeps our planet warm, as well as the force behind earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions, and so organic to all life that even our own human bodies are radioactive. By tracing mankinds complicated relationship with the dangerous energy it discovered and unleashed, Nelson reveals how atomic power and radiation are indivisible from our everyday lives.

Brilliantly told and masterfully crafted, The Age of Radiance provides a new understanding of a misunderstood epoch in history and restores to prominence the forgotten heroes and heroines who have changed all of our lives for better and for worse. It confirms Craig Nelsons position as one of the most lively and skillful popular historians writing today.

Members Reviews:

Interesting and informative, and yes........very e

This is a perfect book mate to "the disappearing spoon" and/or history of the atomic bomb. I really enjoyed the energy for the reader

Strong finish

This ended for me better than it began, as the history it covered I was less aware of in newer years pertaining to nuclear history.