A thorough examination of a complex person during extraordinary times. American Prometheus is both a fascinating exploration of J. Robert Oppenheimer and a cautionary tail of how choices can have unexpected and destructive consequences. Highly recommended. ( )

Fantastic. Relevant to both the times and myself personally. In many ways terribly depressing. A real page turner of a biography. ( )

Too dry and boring. DNF ( )

El 16 de julio de 1945, en el desierto de Nuevo México, se detonaba en secreto la primera bomba atómica. Impactado por el poder destructivo de su creación, J. Robert Oppenheimer, director del Proyecto Manhattan, se comprometería desde entonces a luchar contra el desarrollo de la bomba de hidrógeno y contra la guerra nuclear. Sospechoso de comunista para los Estados Unidos de la era McCarthy, fue perseguido por el FBI, calumniado como espía de la Unión Soviética y obligado a dimitir de cualquier función pública. Su vida privada fue arrastrada del mismo modo hacia el esperpento; su casa fue allanada con micrófonos ocultos, y su teléfono, intervenido. No sería hasta 1963 que el presidente Kennedy lo rehabilitaría y, con ello, su figura obtendría otro cariz para los ciudadanos del mundo entero.

Treinta años de entrevistas a familiares, amigos y colegas; de búsqueda en archivos del FBI; de análisis de las cintas con discursos e interrogatorios, y de hallazgos de documentos privados del físico nuclear dieron como resultado este monumental libro. Una biografía de una enorme minuciosidad que ofrece una visión íntima del científico más famoso de su generación; una de las figuras icónicas del siglo xx para quien el triunfo y la tragedia se unieron en un nudo gordiano.

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American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin is a biography of the famous scientist, “father of the atomic bomb”. The authors won the Pulitzer Prize for this book.

I wanted to read this book for a long time, but after watching Christopher Nolan’s biopic, it made it to the top of the list. If you didn’t read the book, I found that watching the movie, then reading the book, then watching the movie once more (hopefully with subtitles) helped me understand the complex nuances of the time.

American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin is an exceptional biography which manages to weave politics, science, and humanity into an engaging story which changed the world we live in. the book skips, wisely I think, on the overly detailed technical aspects of building the atomic bomb, in favor of life in Los Alamos, and Oppenheimer’s role in it.

The book establishes Oppenheimer as a charismatic intellectual whose speaking and administrative ability led him to great success. Oppenheimer also had the curiosity to look at other subjects that had nothing to do with physics, learn, troubleshoot, or just for his own knowledge.

Much like Walter Issacson’s excellent biography of Einstein, this book is not about physics, but captures the world in which Oppenheimer lived in. The authors allow the readers to understand why he was selected to lead the Manhattan Project, his leadership and organizational capabilities, charisma, and occasional cruelty.

The book is charming on the surface but has dark undertones which are difficult to miss. At times it could be overwhelmingly detailed, however it does provide an understanding of a complex man and the company he kept. ( )