Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb

by Kai Bird, Martin J. Sherwin, Eric Singer (Adapter)

The #1 New York Times bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer was the inspiration for the blockbuster film OPPENHEIMER, and is now adapted for young readers.

This brand-new edition introduces the next generation to one of the twentieth century's most iconic and complex global figures.

J. Robert Oppenheimer was a brilliant physicist who led the American effort to build the atomic bomb during World War II, and who later found himself confronting the moral consequences of the revolutionary weapon he helped create.

Readers of all ages will witness the rise and fall of a scientific and historical icon in this masterful new edition. Exploring his childhood, his secret work on the bomb, his central role in the Cold War, and his tragic downfall, this quintessential biography is history at its finest, riveting and deeply informative, and now available to a younger audience.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography

308 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2025

About the author

Kai Bird is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning author and journalist, best known for his biographies of political figures. He has also won the National Book Critics Circle Award for biography, the Duff Cooper Prize, a Woodrow Wilson Center Fellowship, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He is a Contributing Editor of The Nation magazine.

Bird was born in 1951. His father was a U.S. Foreign Service officer, and he spent his childhood in Jerusalem, Beirut, Dhahran, Cairo and Bombay. He finished high school in 1969 at Kodaikanal International School in Tamil Nadu, South India. He received his BA from Carleton College in 1973 and a M.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University in 1975. Bird now lives in Miami Beach, Florida with his wife, Susan Goldmark, and their son, Joshua.

Reviews

[Ricki · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 11-year-old son read this book this week and said it was the best book he’s ever read. He reads a lot of books, so this is high praise. He’s now tasked me with finding another book just like it. Ha! I highly recommend this one if your kid likes history. He found it to be fascinating.

[Chelsie Jensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Middle grade non fiction. It is an interesting read and those kids that are into government, science and history would enjoy this book.

[Charlie Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very long. In my opinion, this is a decent choice for learning about man-made weapons. Most of it, I didn't mind, but I suppose this could be a little bit boring for some of us, like me. I don't have much to hate or like about this book, so 4 star.