The Devil Reached Toward the Sky: An Oral History of the Making and Unleashing of the Atomic Bomb

by Garrett M. Graff

From the New York Times bestselling author of When the Sea Came Alive and The Only Plane in the Sky, a sweeping and comprehensive oral history of the atomic bomb’s creation and deployment, marking the 80th anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

April 12, 1945. Less than three months into his vice presidency, Harry Truman is catapulted into the Oval Office following the sudden death of Franklin D. Roosevelt. As he recites the oath, he learns a chilling secret known only to a select the United States is on the verge of deploying a weapon of unimaginable power. This weapon could end the war but also herald a new age of global fear and uncertainty.

Drawing from over twenty-five oral history archives across the US, Japan, and Europe, Graff has masterfully blended the memories and perspectives from key figures like Harry Truman and J. Robert Oppenheimer, the crews of the B-29 bombers, Enola Gay and Bock’s Car, and the haunting stories of those at ground zero in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, including the experiences of the hibakusha—the “bomb-affected people”—and the rescuers who bravely faced the devastation.

Enriched by memoirs, diaries, letters, official documents, and news reports, this is an immersive and deeply human account of the then-secret Manhattan Project through the end of World War II and the dawning of the Cold War, capturing the scientific breakthroughs, military decisions, and profound ethical dilemmas that emerged from using nuclear weapons.

A testament to human ingenuity and resilience, Destroyer of Worlds explores the complex legacy of the atomic bomb, offering a vivid, multi-dimensional view of events that reshaped the world. It is an essential read for anyone looking to grasp the full impact of this critical moment in history and the enduring questions it raises about wielding such destructive power.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Science, War, Politics, Audiobook, World War II

608 pages, Hardcover

First published August 5, 2025

About the author

Garrett M. Graff, a distinguished magazine journalist and historian, has spent more than a dozen years covering politics, technology, and national security. He’s written for publications from WIRED to Bloomberg BusinessWeek to the New York Times, and served as the editor of two of Washington’s most prestigious magazines, Washingtonian and POLITICO Magazine, which he helped lead to its first National Magazine Award, the industry’s highest honor.

Graff is the author of multiple books, including "The First Campaign: Globalization, the Web, and the Race for the White House," which examined the role of technology in the 2008 presidential race, and "The Threat Matrix: The FBI At War," which traces the history of the FBI’s counterterrorism efforts. His next book, "Raven Rock," about the government’s Cold War Doomsday plans, will be published in May 2017, and he's currently on an oral history of September 11th, based on his POLITICO Magazine article, "We're The Only Plane in the Sky."

His online career began with his time as Governor Howard Dean’s first webmaster, and in 2005, he was the first blogger accredited to cover a White House press briefing. Today, he serves as the executive director of the Aspen Institute’s cybersecurity and technology program.

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 2023, we all watched the movie, "Oppenheimer," and were reminded of how the world was forever changed in August 1945 when the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Now the truly brilliant journalist and historian Garrett Graff has given us what I believe is the definitive oral history of the creation and use of the weapons. And it is riveting. From the European scientists converging on the United States in the 1930s, often escaping Nazi Germany's "race laws," to the flight crews leaving Tinian Island in the Pacific Ocean in August 1945 with the bombs "Fat Man" and "Little Boy" aboard their planes, the book is both comprehensive and unputdownable. Here are the voices of the Americans and the Japanese, the workers in Oak Ridge and Hanford and Los Alamos, and the victims who survived the cataclysmic explosions. Graff's book is a breathtaking accomplishment -- and a reminder that we must never take our eyes off the Doomsday Clock.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This oral history was fascinating. It started with the discovery of the atom and culminated in the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It’s a combination of genius, ingenuity, bravery and horror.

Creating the ultimate weapon of mass destruction was probably one of the biggest secret projects in history. We hear the words of the brilliant scientists who developed the theories. Ironically, many of them were brought together in one place by the antisemitic Nazi policies. The military personnel of all ranks had to find a way to deliver the bombs. Many of them having no idea what the project was. The planes had to be invented and the bombs tested. A decision had to weighed - whether potentially shortening the war justified use of the bombs. Finally, there are the gut wrenching accounts of the people (most of them Japanese, but some pows as well) who survived the bombing, at least until radiation sickness killed them.

This book is really terrific.

[Gyalten Lekden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling, engaging, and thorough, this oral history isn’t afraid to be as epic in scale as the part of history it is covering. There is a lot of the mundane in here, from deep-in-the-weeds science to minutia about construction work and contractors, but it never once lost my attention. The unleashing of the atomic bombs is not a simple story, and it deserves a sense of grandeur capture the devastation. That means realizing how it is a bunch of mundane experiences and information from tens of thousands of people that culminated in a world-changing event. These details add to one another, increasing the looming inevitability of terrible destruction. The unleashing of the bombs is told with on-the-ground reports from both Hiroshima and Nagasaki, reports of devastation and heartbreak and absolute horror, and these are contrasted with the simultaneous celebrations of the Americans and other allies, and this framing feels the only fitting way to attempt to contain the whole story. This book is incredibly well-researched, extensive and detailed but consistently entertaining and engaging, and helps locate and preserve a critical moment of history from all possible angles. This is, for better or worse, a very human story, and that is what shines through, not some dry history. It is brutal and honest and evocative, and it leaves you wondering how we can look at the state of international warfare 70 years later and consider it progress.

(Rounded from 4.5)

[Liz Hein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an objectively great book, but you do need to be willing to read a lotttt of science. I struggled through some of this, but am so glad I read it.

[Melissa]

Cannot tell you how fast I preordered this book. Every book/oral history by Graff has been a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me.

[Alex Cruse · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars.

Graff has become an auto-read author for me. This is the first oral history I have read from him, and I really enjoyed it. What I appreciated about this topic, was all of the pieces it filled in. The genesis of the project, to all of the locations in the U.S. that were not Los Alamos that assisted in the development of the bomb. Talk about the B-29 and the WASPs was very much up my alley.

Graff was able to scaffold the narrative in a way that created a lot of tension, even when you knew the outcome. What I think is the most noteworthy about this piece is the focus on the voices of those in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it was extremely emotional and a perspective that is often ignored when we talk about the bomb. Additionally, the exploration on the ways in which the U.S. downplayed or full on denied on ground accounts of post-bombing deaths and prolonged sickness was very timely in our current political and global climate.

If you enjoyed Oppenheimer, I would recommend this.

[Ric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Garrett Graff’s books always create an incredible narrative through firsthand quotes and in depth research. And having already loved reading about the Manhattan Project, I knew this one would be for me. It was 500 pages and didn’t feel like a slog at all, I flew through it for as dense and long as it was. It goes through every bit of the project and the main characters surrounding it, and the epilogue talking about the effect of the fallout on Japan was harrowing. Just a phenomenal read.

[Ian Schuster · Rating 4 out of 5]

I pity those who feel that US’ use of the bomb was warranted

[Kenzie | kenzienoelle.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Objectively this is a 5 star book. Sooo much research to put this into an oral history format.

But I rate books subjectively! And there was a lotttt of science and the like that didn’t keep my attention. I listened to this on audio and it was a full cast and so well done.

[Anshuman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Garrett M. Graff is possibly the greatest oral historian of our time. In The Devil Reaches Toward the Sky, he pulls off an astonishing feat by placing the reader right in the midst of some of the greatest physicists in history as they race to build a monstrosity. It’s an engaging read, full of fascinating anecdotes. A must-read for fans of both science and history. Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy of this book from Avid Reader Press/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

while it’s so necessary to hear from the important people in history , garrett graff packs a punch in all his books with the less known through out ❣️

[Catherine Mustread · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Week on History Happy Hour (080125): As we approach the 80th anniversary of the atomic bomb, HHH alum Garrett M. Graff has come out with a new oral history of the development of the bomb. “Chris and Rick will explore with him the breakthroughs and the breakneck pace of atomic development in the years leading up to 1945, what it was like inside the bombers carrying Little Boy and Fat Man and finally to ground zero at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Garrett M. Graff is a journalist, historian, producer, and speaker. He taught at Georgetown University for seven years, including courses on journalism and technology, and his writing and commentary has appeared in publications like the Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, New York, Bloomberg. He appeared on History Happy Hour to talk about his D-Day Oral History, When the Sea came Alive. His book Watergate: A New History was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. He is also the author of The Only Plane in the Sky, an oral history of 9/11. He lives in Montpelier, Vermont.”

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like all of Graff's projects, this is such a magisterial accomplishment that will utterly sweep you away - especially when read as a full-cast audiobook.

In any historical project, there's always the question of what to include and what to leave out, and whose voices to prioritize. Graff is dedicated in his work to make sure that the voices on the sidelines are included to the full extent possible - the wives of the scientists, the Black and the Native voices whose stories of displacement and social stratification live in stark contrast to the story of scrappy white determinism that blankets so much of what we hear about the atomic bomb, the women who were trained to fly the new B29's because the male pilots were too scared to do it, and most critically, the first person perspectives of the Japanese civilians who experienced the trauma and devastation of the Tokyo firebombing and the atomic bomb drops. A true historian, Graff does not shy away from or minimize the brutality of the civilian experience, and these chapters are absolutely gut-wrenching to read.

My quibbles are more personal complaints than they are any real scholarly criticism of this work itself. A good 25% of this books is about the science itself - the nuclear physics that actually made the bomb work, and ALLLLL the trial and error that got them to the place of launch day. I can see how this would be interesting to a lot of readers, but it felt so less important to me than the other work Graff was doing in this book. He gave very little to no substantial real estate to exploring the question of the necessity of dropping the bombs in the first place - how the decision to drop the bombs was ultimately made and reflections on whether or not people felt like it was the right call. This, to me, is one of the key turning points around which any discussion of the atomic bomb revolves, and to not explore it in any kind of depth (while also devoting SO MUCH real estate to the physics of the development of the weapons themselves) seems misguided, particularly in our current environment. It's a quintessential embodiment of the Jeff Goldblum meme from Jurassic Park: "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should."

Still, though, what's beautiful about Graff's books (even if they play a little fast and loose with the definition of "oral history") is how accessibly they ask us to bear witness to pivotal moments in American and world history, and how diligently he works to platform the REAL voices on the ground for those moments, not just the official government statements and propaganda. This is history, and historiography, and its best, and sometimes at its worst, but certainly at its most honest.

"The question of morality in warfare is vexing: Is there a moral way to kill someone?"

Probably not, but there is a moral way to write about history, and Graff does that.

[Dawn Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely fascinating oral history of the evolution of the atomic bomb [and its aftermath ]. This was my first Garrett M. Graff book, but it most certainly will not be my last.

Starting with the discovery of the atom and ending with the dropping of Fat Man and Little Boy on Nagasaki and Hiroshima [and the aftermath of the bombings ], this extremely well-written book is filled with so many POV's [with narrators for all ] and that is what makes it so interesting. You get to hear first-person accounts from those who were there and wrote about it [the amount of research that went into the book is absolutely mind-boggling ]. From the bomb creators, the scientists [SO. MUCH. SCIENCE. I'll admit I got a little lost there ], and the plane builders [with all the books I have read about this time, I never realized that they had to build a new plane to be able to CARRY the bombs - that was very eye-opening ], to the actual testing of the bomb in Los Alamos [as I was listening to them tell about what happened that night, the scene from the excellent movie "Oppenheimer" played through my mind ], as well as a very up-close journey through what the Japanese went through in the aftermath [it is also very interesting to learn just how many Japanese DID NOT want to end the war even AFTER the first bomb was dropped - I was just flabbergasted at that ], this book gives you a front-row seat to one of the most exciting [science-wise ] AND frightening times in history [the chapters about the bombings and the aftermath will absolutely break you ], and leaves you praying we never have to have a reason [ANY reason, real or manufactured ] to ever do this again. May we never do this again.

Thank you to NetGalley, Garrett M. Graff, and Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Elizabeth • LizziePageReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Avid Reader Press for the finished copy and to Simon Audio for the audiobook.

I went in knowing very little about the science or history of the atomic bomb — which in hindsight, I’m not sure I recommend lol. For that reason, reading and listening at the same time helped tremendously.

It’s easy to hear “Manhattan Project” and think scientists in New Mexico pushing buttons, but that’s only part of the story. The atomic bomb was a marvel of science, yes, but also American industry. In just three years, they managed to produce not just the uranium and plutonium, but also the facilities to do so, and the facilities needed to create the weapon itself. It’s staggering. And sobering.

The last 50% of the book absolutely captivated me — I finished it in one evening. This section talked about the decision making process (when, where, and whether to drop the bomb), the actual bombing, the human toll… just wow.

The oral history format made it even more powerful. History can feel inevitable in hindsight. Of course the Allies won WWII, of course the US built the first atomic bomb, of course D-Day succeeded. But Garrett’s books always remind me how fragile those outcomes really were. Nothing was foretold and nothing was guaranteed. A different twist of fate, and everything could’ve changed.

It’s a powerful reminder that the people living in those moments had agency, and so do we. Finishing this book, I’m more convinced than ever that atomic weapons belong in the past. As Einstein said, “I do not know how the Third World War will be fought, but I can tell you what they will use in the Fourth — rocks”

Audio: As with Garrett’s prior books, the oral history is narrated by a full cast, which makes it so much easier to track who’s speaking. I love doing tandem reads of his books — listening and following along in print — and this one is especially great in that format!

[Jake Preston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating history of the formation and unleashing of the atomic bomb. It was a bit science-heavy to start, but the latter half was at the same time captivating and horrifying.

[Catherine Hultman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The part of this book that dealt with the scientific beginnings of the bomb were way over my head! However, the last two thirds of the book were fascinating.

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Garrett M. Graff’s “The Devil Reached Toward the Sky: An Oral History of the Making and Unleashing of the Atomic Bomb” stands as a masterfully woven tapestry of firsthand accounts, charting the harrowing birth of the atomic age and its lingering moral complexities. What sets Graff’s work apart is his reliance on the lived voices of participants—from Manhattan Project scientists to the B-29 crews and the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki—creating an educational mosaic that is as intimate as it is panoramic. Graff opens with Harry Truman’s abrupt ascension to the presidency and the chilling revelation of the bomb’s existence—a narrative fulcrum around which the book pivots. The author then stretches backward and forward, tracing the highly secretive race to beat Nazi Germany to atomic capability, emphasizing the fevered progress in laboratory enclaves at Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Hanford. This context vividly illustrates not just scientific ingenuity but the ethical torment of those tasked with building a weapon that could end millions of lives. Drawing from more than two dozen oral history archives and an array of letters, diaries, and official documents, Graff captures the spirit, confusion, and fear of witnesses and victims, juxtaposing the jubilance of technical achievement with the horror experienced by bomb survivors, the Hibakusha. Graff shines a poignant spotlight on overlooked figures—like project spouses, laborers, and Japanese civilians—filling historical gaps left by more conventional studies. Readers are immersed in scenes of Bockscar and Enola Gay loading mysterious bombs, the last-minute revelations given to flight crews, and—most hauntingly—the ordinary citizens whose lives were irrevocably transformed in moments of blinding terror. Graff’s chronicle is both history lesson and existential meditation, posing the immortal question voiced by Enola Gay co-pilot Robert Lewis—“My God, what have we done?”—and inviting reflection on the atomic bomb’s legacy. This is oral history at its finest: a compelling, singular contribution that brings to life scientific ambition, political calculation, and human agony, all with outstanding educational value for anyone seeking to understand the creation and consequences of the world’s most terrifying weapon.

[Christian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have grown to eagerly await oral histories by Graff. Every time he releases a new piece, I order it as soon as I see it. While the narratives for 9/11 and D-Day were breathtaking, this is his best work. The outcomes of those two most important days in American history pale in comparison to how all of humanity changed in seconds in the air above Hiroshima. The genie was let out of the bottle that day, and wars won, hearts faltered, arsenals cached cannot change that fact. War has been fought and human conflict has been fundamentally different these last 80 years. Because of that day, we can utterly destroy ourselves forever. For these reasons and more, the story gathered here by Graff represents his finest work. I particularly appreciated the new information on Hanford, Oak Ridge and the survivors in Japan. These were perspectives that are lacking in what seems to be burgeoning literature on the Manhattan project since Christopher Nolan’s film last year.

[Colleen Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I can’t say I recommend – it’s too distressing – but which I deeply appreciate.

In the acknowledgements, the author writes that he has come to think of his work as “encompassing its own ‘historical cinematic universe,’ akin to my personal Marvel Cinematic Universe or DC Universe, where all the comic heroes and villains live and interact.”

That tracks.

I read Hiroshima by John Hersey in the 1980s, in a college class called “The Nuclear Age.” I’ve attended events hosted on August 6 by Peace Action of New York State, when the book was read aloud in a park in Albany.

I spent the better part of a year reading American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin – though I did not see the film it inspired.

So while I was familiar with many of the characters in the “historical cinematic universe,” the author's introductory paragraphs at the beginning of each chapter provided welcome context and set the stage for the quotes about to come.

To “hear” those voices from some eight decades ago is to realize how our discourse – and all of our civic communications – has deteriorated. The tone of most of the quotes was thoughtful, measured and indicated a grasp of the significance of the moment in history.

The author thanks a long list of people who helped source, cite and compile the materials used in the book, calling out libraries, as well as librarians, archivists, and historians in particular. He notes that “libraries are the lifeblood of so many of our communities and such an incredible part of our civic fabric and national memory … all of us owe them our thanks and defense as libraries and librarians face unprecedented attacks and challenges in the modern environment.”

I hope that we will continue to study and honor the lessons of history, and support the cause of democracy around the world. If not, the future is far too bleak to imagine.

Ten years after the Atomic Age began with the incineration of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Albert Einstein was one of the authors and signers of The Russell-Einstein Manifesto, which read in part:

“In view of the fact that in any future world war nuclear weapons will certainly be employed, and that such weapons threaten the continued existence of mankind, we urge the governments of the world to realize, and to acknowledge publicly, that their purpose cannot be furthered by a world war, and we urge them, consequently, to find peaceful means for the settlement of all matters of dispute between them.”

There’s another, more pithy quote attributed to Einstein towards the end of Graff’s book: “I do not know how the Third World War will be fought, but I can tell you what they will use in the Fourth – rocks.”

[Sandra Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history and science of Graff's atomic bomb research are both fascinating, making it an incredible read. He starts with the discovery of the atom and concludes with the devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the atomic bomb. Hearing the actual survivors' oral testimonies is immensely moving. I will treasure their stories forever. I hope you read this book!

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Graff nails the oral history format. This is very well done. The science behind the atomic bombs and the story of their creation is interesting, but what really stuck with me here was the perspective we got from the survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

[Jane Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an exceptional audiobook telling the story in realtime using multiple fascinating voices/quotes-each only a sentence or two. Marvelous

[Joni · Rating 5 out of 5]

10

[Emmet Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. Graff is the master of this style of book & this one doesn’t disappoint. Worth it as an audiobook specifically. I learned so much despite having already read a lot of the big works in this area.

[J.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had to pause this many times after the bomb was dropped because of the graphic nature of the oral histories. It's like John Hersey's Hiroshima on crack. But I highly recommend listening to it on audio, with real vocal clips from FDR and Truman. Plus the full cast does a fantastic job telling the narrative. If I didn't appreciate it's historical value enough, the shoutout to librarians and archivists and their need in American society in the credits made it even better!

[Dean Kraft · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate Graff’s monumental effort to compile oral histories. This one did not captivate me like his oral history of 9/11 but it’s no less impressive. I found parts 4 & 5 most interesting.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn’t super thrilled with the format but I wasn’t used to oral histories in general. Thought that the valourization of the atomic bombs and the bombings was way overdone. I also think that Graff should have highlights the effects of the bombing long-term more than he did, but definitely felt like it was written for an American audience who may be uncomfortable with the scale of the devastation. Also found it interesting that he completely skipped over Oppenheimer’s hearing.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly disturbing, powerful and timely book. From the inception of the bomb to its deployment and ultimate fallout and repercussions. I would heavily recommend but there are parts that will haunt for a long time as they should.

[Dan Downing · Rating 5 out of 5]

While browsing the used book booth at the Main Street Fair when I was about 15, I found an almost mint copy of Henry Smyth's "Atomic Energy for Military Purposes." It sounded promising. It was terrific and has been with me ever since. I added to my readings on atomic energy over the years, most prominently with the three volumes Richard Rhodes devoted to it. The first, "The Making of the Atomic Bomb", is magisterial.
Mr. Graff's effort is no less spectacular. It may even be a more impressive effort at organization and research: he has taken the voices (in text) of dozens and made them sound almost as one. The insight surprises again and again, flooring as the perspective shifts.
Some might complain about the science, but it is high school stuff; maybe these days, grade school. The history is not particularly difficult, although there are a few jolts in store for those who think The Heritage Foundation is a bastion for accurate history. The portraits of so many people here confound the idea that we are a nation of regular folks: too many in our history have been extraordinary. The group around FDR, and the President himself, seem to have stepped out of mythology.
Example: We have a few sentences devoted to John von Neumann, yet his genius was stamped all over the bomb as well as the 20th Century. Yet the treatment is fair: there were so many giants.

After the bombs were away, Mr. Graff gives us the voices of survivors and some narrative about how the United States handled the post bombing news. Without grinding our noses in it, he gives us the censorship and lies that followed. As a betrayal of American character, these attempts at censorship are on a par with the right-wing lies and doublethink we bathe in today. One of the key books in my education about the bomb was John Hershey's "Hiroshima", assigned reading in school. The Democrats and later Republicans of that era promulgated the lies.

While pulling books out of the past, one might well recall Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five" and James Scott's "Black Snow", both telling the stories of survivors of firebombings conducted during WWII by the Allies, albeit in different ways, both powerful.

These books, as well as Graff's selections, make for difficult reading. One by no means has to condemn the bombings to feel the horror of the victims. Indeed, as conscience and civic responsibility go, these are guidelines to what happens when the mass of people let the monsters take over.

History is meaningful to us when we can learn lessons we can use. Being a Japanese citizen in the 1930s, or a German citizen at the same time, gave people somewhat less of a voice than Americans have today. Yet if we do not tread carefully and with courage, we will wind up the same way: victims of war and enemies of history.

An aside: To those who intend harm to the United States. History shows many examples, from native American raids on pioneers, to the atomic bombs, to Dresden, to Afghanistan, to the World Trade Towers, to yesterday's assassinations of 11 people on a boat in international waters (totally unconstitutional and criminal, but that won't bring the dead to life): all these and more point out that when you mess with the U.S. you will receive a wholely out of proportoon response. Sometimes, we repent and rebuild, like Europe and Japan. Other times we let you rot and starve and wallow in self-deception, like North Korea.

Highly Recommended