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American Ground Zero: The Secret Nuclear War
A poignant collection of photographs which records the devastating effects of the United States government's mendacious and reckless nuclear testing program on the men, women, children, animals, and landscape of the American continent.
360 pages, Paperback
First published March 10, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 23, 2014
Listen, this book is amazing and important. Not such a big fan of the victim blaming in her prologue, and to some extent throughout the book. I thought Zimbardo and Milgram showed that the majority of people are obedient and deferent to what they perceive to be figures of authority? It's not just a "Mormon" thing.
The whole idea of the IRB is that the onus of responsible research is on the researchers, NOT on the test subjects (obviously, as in this case, when they are not informed and not consenting).
Still, the fact that many of the people most impacted are still ignorant of the abuses and defend Nuclear anything is something that needs to be remedied, thus this book. But the victim blaming gets in the way of at least the Mormon population using and appreciating this book as much as they could.
Still, the material in this book is so important. I recommend it to everyone.
The whole idea of the IRB is that the onus of responsible research is on the researchers, NOT on the test subjects (obviously, as in this case, when they are not informed and not consenting).
Still, the fact that many of the people most impacted are still ignorant of the abuses and defend Nuclear anything is something that needs to be remedied, thus this book. But the victim blaming gets in the way of at least the Mormon population using and appreciating this book as much as they could.
Still, the material in this book is so important. I recommend it to everyone.
May 13, 2012
An oral history of Americans involved in and affected by America's nuclear testing program, as told in their own words. This includes pilots who flew through mushroom clouds, personnel on the ground facilitating experiments, and people living downwind from nuclear tests. "Downwinders" include people in St. George, Utah, just across the state line from the Nevada Proving Grounds to a faculty member at Rensselaer Polytech in Upstate NY who measured radioactive fallout on campus from a Nevada test. As the name suggests, the focus is on the fallout (both literal and metaphorical) that has affected Americans from this era in history. A beautiful and unsettling book.
July 15, 2009
You can't look at "your" government the same way after seeing how many of your fellow Americans' lives were written off for the sake of weapons testing.
August 10, 2009
I couldn't finish this book. It was amazing and well-written -- but it was utterly too emotionally draining and depressing. The accompanying photographs merely made it all to real to deal with. The devastating cancer cases, the frustrating government cover-up, the atomic fall-out cloud treated as evening entertainment...it was just too much to absorb. Everyone should know this about our government -- they sponsored atomic tests on their own citizens -- on our parents, on you and me -- for years, and they shamelessly lied about it. Everyone who lives in the U.S., and the world, has been affected by our selfishness and greed. That comes as no surprise to most, but this profoundly disturbed me and broke my naive innocence on the matter. It's hard to believe anything the (possibly well-meaning) current administration says after reading this -- it all seems to tumble into lies, lies, and more lies. Very sad.
December 31, 2008
An amazing book about the after-effects of American nuclear test sites, specifically the Nevada test site. This book focuses on the stories of individuals that worked at the site and those downwinders affected by the fallout. With heartbreaking stories and beautiful black and white photography, Gallagher has preserved a part of history that the U.S. government has tried to silence and cover up. The nuclear fallout from the Nevada test site alone stretches across the nation. It affects us all.
July 27, 2026
Ben documentato, ben scritto, ci fa capire cosa vuol dire avere dei pazzi scatenati a capo dei vari reparti di governo, e di come tutti fossero genuflessi agli interessi delle mafie atomiche. Nulla e nessuno fu risparmiato dalla cupidigia e dalla follia di quei pazzi; animali, umani, territorio, aria, acqua. Niente li poté fermare in quella folle corsa all'atomica che ha ucciso migliaia di persone e di animali in tempo di pace. Veramente vergognoso!
May 20, 2017
Although dry and a bit repetitive, there is something powerful in the commonality of the stories from the "downwinders".
February 4, 2009
I chose to read this book because my grandpa worked at the NV test site as a surveyor during the late 50's, early 60's, when above ground testing was going on. This book was horrifying. I can't believe the widespread effects on Southern Utah and Nevada.
February 14, 2015
this book is a must. i knew the fallout from all those tests in the 50's/60's/70's/80's on southern utah was bad but i had no freakin' idea just how bad it was. ms. gallagher brings these poor peoples sufferings uncomfortably close. annd..you don't want to look away.
February 7, 2020
A graphic illustration of the human cost of the above-ground nuclear testing that occurred in Nevada in the 1950s.
Want to Read
January 16, 2008My oncologist recommended this one.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews