The Atomic City Girls: A Novel

I am sitting in my home in the very city this book was written about. My parents met here in 1944, My mother was a
courier carrying mail and papers between buildings. I was not born here, but in Knoxville, Tn. about 30 miles away but had two uncles that worked here, one at the Y12 plant and the other a mailman here for over 30 years.Can remember as a child having to come through the gates into the city . You had to have a pass to get in. Although this is one of the fiction novels of this era and place it was a simple but good story. I enjoyed it , Was our book club pick for this month.

Historical fiction is my favorite genre and I thoroughly enjoyed The Atomic City Girls. This book is a fictional account of true events. Janet Beard provided a glimpse into the then unknown city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Oak Ridge was a city built by the government to work on building the atomic bomb. June is an eighteen year old woman who decides to leave home to work in the top secret city. While there, she meets and falls in love with Sam Cantor, a physicist working on the bomb. I was instantly pulled into the story and sympathized with June's character. This was a quick read for me and I enjoyed the old pictures of Oak Ridge and the government workers.

I liked this book a lot! I enjoyed learning about another lesser-known aspect of our history, and the role of women in that history. I've wondered before about the people that developed the bomb, and if they had any misgivings about the weapon, and in that respect I appreciated Sam's character in the book, even though he was a flawed individual. I appreciated the last chapter where the author wraps up all the stories with what became of these characters. Good read! Can't wait to discuss with book club next week!

I received this book for free as a member of the Book Club Girl Book Club from Harper Collins, and it was a great read.

I sort of liked this book, but was ready for it to be finished. It was sort of a love story, but I didn't really feel a draw to the characters or their relationship. I kept listening, thinking something would "happen", but, nothing really did. The characters never really intermixed with each other and when they did it wasn't very exciting. I'm really not sure exactly what this book was trying to be, a love story, love hate relationship with the girls, a historical fiction novel or a civil rights memoir.

Even though I was raised in this area, I heard more about government taking farms to build the dams And displacing many families.It was not easy for a lot to start over.Mostly I heard how they needed all those dams for a lot of power.The many lakes
And rivers certainly helped. Even the Great Smokies were affected with so many people coming from many, many places to the area.It was well disguised and most people had no idea of the purpose of Oak Ridge.

It is November 1944. Eighteen-year-old June Walker leaves behind her family and their rural life. She and hundreds of other young women head to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, which does not even exist on any map. They have been hired to monitor huge machines, the purpose of which is also a mystery. The women are taught how to operate and adjust the various dials, levers and knobs to keep the numbers within certain ranges. Yet they are totally ignorant of the nature and true objective of the mysterious machines that they are in charge of six days a week. The work itself, though critical, is rather boring.

The pay is good, and there is a ready supply of soldiers and civilian employees to occupy the young women during their free time. Oak Ridge operates 24 hours a day because of its top-secret mission. Workers are warned not to speak to anyone about what they see, hear or experience at Oak Ridge. Because no one can really be trusted, this makes conversation even among co-workers a bit tricky. It is difficult to weigh every word that one speaks throughout the course of a day.

Three other characters figure prominently in THE ATOMIC CITY GIRLS. June’s roommate, Cici, has one goal in mind --- to cast off her family’s poverty as sharecroppers and marry a wealthy young man. Joe Brewer, a colored construction worker (remember, readers, this book is set in 1944 in the South, and segregation is still a very unpleasant reality), has left his family in Alabama to come to Oak Ridge where he can make decent money. The last important character is a brilliant scientist, Sam Cantor, who heads the department where June works.

Sam is a rather dour figure. Negative and moody, he attempts to medicate his worries with alcohol but is not successful in forgetting the ultimate goal of the work being done, because he knows the secret of Oak Ridge. It is part of the Manhattan Project. Highly critical material created at Oak Ridge is sent to a top-secret facility across the country, where it is being used to create the atomic bomb. Sam, as a physicist, knows too well the awful truth about the utter devastation that will be unleashed if the Manhattan Project succeeds. No wonder he is depressed and trying to drink himself into oblivion! June and Sam carry on an intimate relationship, and bit by bit Sam reveals to June the true mission of Oak Ridge, putting both of them in danger for sharing the protected information.

Though history long ago informed us of the drastic results of the Manhattan Project, it is interesting to read what life was like for the residents and workers at Oak Ridge. And in this day of ubiquitous and ever-invasive communications, it would be difficult to understand how the Manhattan Project actually pulled off its humongous top-secret goal without the thorough research of author Janet Beard.

Reviewed by Carole Turner

When the subject of WWII comes up I usually think about soldiers and battle fields first, then Rosie the Riveters and victory gardens on the Homefront. But this novel offered a new perspective for me, one I never considered, which is the people involved in building the atomic bombs. Each character went to Oak Ridge for their own reasons, some patriotic, others more self-serving, and very few were allowed to know any more about what they were doing other than their tiny piece of the job. Only the top level scientists knew they were building an atomic weapon, and what that meant. We learn bits and pieces through the physicist Sam, who was conflicted about his role. I would like to have heard more of his inner dialogue about it, but overall the story was good and I believe a well rounded picture of the subject.

I would recommend to anyone interested in the World War II era.

Wonderful read. Though I have read many books about the scientific development of the bomb in Los Alamos, I knew practically nothing about the huge secret city which was developed to administer, make, refine and distribute everything connected to it. Extraordinary that the secret could be kept and the story through the eyes of ordinary women is all the more fantastic. Excellent read.

This book was full of historical information about the development of Oak Ridge, TN and the Atomic Bombs. I had never read about the enrichment of uranium before. They knew so little about the effects of asbestos and radiation then. I can't help but wonder what would have happened if the bombs had not been developed.

While the title is definitely misleading, this is a fairly well done light fictionalized treatment of the support staff at Oak Ridge during WWII. Beard has woven the stories of four people- two women (not girls btw) and two men throughout the novel until their relationships collide at the end. Sam is a physicist, Joe a laborer/janitor, and Cici and June start off turning dials until June becomes a secretary. Only Sam is supposed to know what's happening at Oak Ridge. I can't imagine sitting on a stool all day long watching dials as Cici and June did. Geez. Each of the characters has something to attach to but June is probably the best fleshed out. I appreciated the insight into how the African American workers were treated. I liked the epilogue, as it helped round out the stories of these four people. Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC. This is for fans of historical fiction.

I thought this novel was well-written and well researched. The story itself is sad because we know what has followed the work of Oak Ridge, the age of the atom bomb. The characters are interesting and believable. I wish there were happy endings here, but as you read, you know they aren't coming.

Interesting story of what occurred in Oak Ridge, TN, during the war. Sad that man invented such a destructive weapon, and that most of those working toward its development knew next to nothing in regard to what the purpose of this small town actually was.

I don’t understand why the author titled this book “The atomic City Girls” as this is not about the girls but about a few residents of Oak Ridge. I had a hard time getting through this book. The characters never really developed and the story line was pretty basic. I did enjoy the research and photos for this book and that’s why am giving it 3 stars instead of 2.

Janet Beard's The Atomic City Girls is the perfect historical fiction! I knew very little about this very big part in history and it was so intriguing learning about it! Janet's research was incredible with so much detail added!

Interesting from a historical aspect. I had no idea that Clinton Engineering Works, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee in the 1940’s (Atomic City) even existed. The photos give us a glimpse into the every day life of a worker in Atomic City.

I liked the character definition and found the subject interesting, but about halfway through I was tired of reading so much covering the same content. There also weren’t many likable characters to keep me interested.

As others have said the story topic is fascinating. The writing of this story? Shallow, sophomoric, and racist. The chapters that were to highlight the black perspective? Used the term'boy' to describe full grown men. Repeatedly. The word is not used ONCE for the white characters. The women characters? Two dimensional, and trite. Sickening. Don't spend money on this insult. I wish I hadn't.

This book had so much potential. I thought it would be a little bit more historical than romance novel. The characters and plot were underdeveloped. The author could have done so much more with the story. It felt like she decided she had written enough pages and abruptly ended the book with quick summaries of what happened with the characters. Highly disappointing.

This book is very good, but this is the best narration I’ve ever heard for an audiobook!! Xe did amazing in her transition from male to female to narrator!
This is a great historical tale leading up to the bombings in Japan that ended WWII.

Janet Beard peals back the curtain of the The Atomic City in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The history is fascinating. I highly recommend this book.

*I borrowed a copy of this book from my local library. All views expressed are my honest opinion.*

I listened to this book on CD while commuting to work. I did not know that women worked on the atomic bomb, this was interesting to learn about this part of history. I liked the way the author ended the book by mentioning what happened to the main characters.

I thought this novel was well-written and well researched. The story itself is sad because we know what has followed the work of Oak Ridge, the age of the atom bomb. The characters are interesting and believable. I wish there were happy endings here, but as you read, you know they aren't coming.

Interesting story of what occurred in Oak Ridge, TN, during the war. Sad that man invented such a destructive weapon, and that most of those working toward its development knew next to nothing in regard to what the purpose of this small town actually was.

I don’t understand why the author titled this book “The atomic City Girls” as this is not about the girls but about a few residents of Oak Ridge. I had a hard time getting through this book. The characters never really developed and the story line was pretty basic. I did enjoy the research and photos for this book and that’s why am giving it 3 stars instead of 2.

Janet Beard's The Atomic City Girls is the perfect historical fiction! I knew very little about this very big part in history and it was so intriguing learning about it! Janet's research was incredible with so much detail added!

Interesting from a historical aspect. I had no idea that Clinton Engineering Works, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee in the 1940’s (Atomic City) even existed. The photos give us a glimpse into the every day life of a worker in Atomic City.

I liked the character definition and found the subject interesting, but about halfway through I was tired of reading so much covering the same content. There also weren’t many likable characters to keep me interested.

As others have said the story topic is fascinating. The writing of this story? Shallow, sophomoric, and racist. The chapters that were to highlight the black perspective? Used the term'boy' to describe full grown men. Repeatedly. The word is not used ONCE for the white characters. The women characters? Two dimensional, and trite. Sickening. Don't spend money on this insult. I wish I hadn't.

This book had so much potential. I thought it would be a little bit more historical than romance novel. The characters and plot were underdeveloped. The author could have done so much more with the story. It felt like she decided she had written enough pages and abruptly ended the book with quick summaries of what happened with the characters. Highly disappointing.

Being a native Tennessean but knowing very little about the history of Oak Ridge, I found the book to be interesting and educational. It provides a brief slice of life of the main characters who intrigued me enough to want to find out what happened to them.

I had no idea that any of this even happened! I quick grew attached to the characters who had no idea what they were working on (because it was top secret) but I knew what was up! This is a must read!!

What a wonderful book! Highly recommend!
The characters were well thought out and likable (for the most part, haha) and the story must have been VERY WELL researched-the descriptions of Oak Ridge make you feel like you’re walking through the streets. The addition of the photos was the perfect touch-they are amazing! I’m so glad I got a paperback copy instead of the kindle edition, because the pics wouldn’t have worked out on my paperwhite.

It took a little longer than usually for me to read (but I did read another book while I was reading this). I don’t often read more than one at a time, because I also have chapter books I read with my kids & audiobooks in the car-don’t want to get too confused, but it wasn’t a problem to get right back into this story each time I picked it up.

Liked it as an interesting piece of American history I was unaware of. Title was a bit misleading as it was a collection of characters, the most interesting and best developed (to me) was the African American and the challenges he endured. I enjoyed the variety of sub-stories, but didn't quite get to caring about them enough, hence my 3 star review. Still, glad I read it. The period photos added to the story.

I enjoyed the entire book. Knowing a little history anyway, it was good to get backgrounds on some of the individuals working at Oak Ridge. Amazing that it was such a "secret", and stayed that way for all this time.

This book is very good, but this is the best narration I’ve ever heard for an audiobook!! Xe did amazing in her transition from male to female to narrator!
This is a great historical tale leading up to the bombings in Japan that ended WWII.

I made a mistake and thought I had ordered Kiernan's book, "The Girls of Atomic City". In book club today, no one could understand what characters I was talking about. Turns out, I had mistakenly ordered Beard's book, "The Atomic City Girls"? This was written in 2018, 5 years after Kiernan's book. Everyone loved Kiernan's book, I didn't love Beard's book. How is it that someone can write a book so incredibly close in title and contents of someone else's book and get rave reviews?