American Prometheus

The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer

By: Kai Bird, Martin J. Sherwin

Narrated by: Jeff Cummings

Length: 26 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • The definitive biography of J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the iconic figures of the twentieth century, a brilliant physicist who led the effort to build the atomic bomb for his country in a time of war, and who later found himself confronting the moral consequences of scientific progress.

THE INSPIRATION FOR THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE OPPENHEIMER

J. Robert Oppenheimer is one of the iconic figures of the twentieth century, a brilliant physicist who led the effort to build the atomic bomb for his country in a time of war and who later found himself confronting the moral consequences of scientific progress.

When he proposed international controls over atomic materials, opposed the development of the hydrogen bomb, and criticized plans for a nuclear war, his ideas were anathema to powerful advocates of a massive nuclear buildup during the anti-Communist hysteria of the early 1950s. They declared that Oppenheimer could not be trusted with America’s nuclear secrets.

In this magisterial biography twenty-five years in the making, which won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for biography, the authors capture Oppenheimer’s life and times, from his early career to his central role in the Cold War.

©2005 Kai Bird; 2007 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"The definitive biography...Oppenheimer's life doesn't influence us. It haunts us." ( Newsweek)

"[A] profoundly fascinating, richly complex, and ineffably sad American life.... Bird and Sherwin are without peer...in capturing the humanity of the man." ( Booklist)

"A work of voluminous scholarship and lucid insight, unifying its multifaceted portrait with a keen grasp of Oppenheimer's essential nature.... It succeeds in deeply fathoming his most damaging, self-contradictory behavior." ( New York Times)

Interesting history

Very well done, but more detail than you really need to know. It gives a good history of politics and education in the twentieth century.

Well worth the listen

26+ hours that went by like *that*. I loved this audiobook.

The narration was very good, but as pointed out by others there are many edits where it's clear they've inserted a patched portion of audio. In some points there is a near constant stream of these patched sections and I found it distracting. There is also a fairly boring stretch (for me, at least) that lasts for perhaps 3 hours just prior to Los Alamos, but overall this is well worth the read.

The focus of the book is the anti-communist witch-hunt (and personal vendetta) carried out against Oppenheimer. There is very little technical information about the building of the atomic bomb, but this did not detract from the fascinating story of his life. By the end of the book, when they get to his security hearing for the Automatic Energy Commission (his "trial" for communist connections), I was transfixed and could not shut this thing off. The testimony given in support of Oppenheimer during the trial was in some cases very moving.

It is a balanced and fair portrait, I feel. I knew nothing about Oppenheimer before reading this account, and I now I feel I know him very well indeed both the good and the bad. First rate biography.

A Rich Slive of Modern American History

Where does American Prometheus rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This was among the best non-fiction books I’ve read in quite awhile. I saw modern American historyfrom a unique perspective. , the subject matter was rich, the writing strong, and the long read was well worth the time.

I selected American Prometheus with the expectation that I would learn about the anti-communism scares of the 1950s and how a famous scientist was harmed in a notorious hearing. In other words, I was prepared for a largely political story – a “tisk-tisk, they should not have done that” courtroom drama of a crucified saint.

This book delivered far more than I expected. In the meticulously researched account of Oppenheimer’s 62 years, it portrays a man who was fascinating for his awesome mental horsepower as well as for his numerous oddities and personal flaws. Certainly, this book tells about a man who ultimately was crucified, but there is no saint here. In some important ways, his personal life was tragic, and the book pulls no punches. Several times, I wanted to reach through the ether and tell him to straighten up his life.

My passion for science helped hold my interest. Oppenheimer began his career at the dawn of quantum physics in the 1920s and dealt with a who’s who of famous scientists: Einstein, Bohr, Heisenberg, Lawrence, and Teller among others. I was fascinated by some behind-the-scenes accounts of these men. Heisenberg’s assignments in Nazi Germany were interpreted by Oppenheimer and others as part of the clues that the Nazis were trying to create an atomic bomb. Einstein had a friendly rivalry with Oppenheimer: they each thought the other was pursuing faulty science. Teller despised Oppenheimer—and a lot of scientists did not like Teller.

What did you like best about this story?

I was amazed by how much detail is revealed about the process of designing and building the atomic bomb without revealing top-secret information. The authors focus on the many personalities, the strain of racing against the Germans, and the sometimes humorous stories about academic scientists learning to deal with Army secrecy.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

First, as other reviewers have said, the editing of the audio recording was very poor. I would say it was amateurish. Second, the narrator does not seem to listen to himself. I was distracted by his switching from a dispassionate narrator voice to conversational, emotional voices.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

One tidbit will stick with me always: the name “Trinity” given to the site of the first test bomb is not a Biblical reference as I had thought. Oppenheimer chose the name from an ancient Sanskrit account of three gods, one of whom says “now I am Death, the destroyer of worlds.”

Quality Book with OK Recording

The book is incredibly in depth and is very much worth the listen. My only qualm is that it appeared to me that the Narrator of the audio book had mispronounced many of the names of key characters and places and went back and re-recorded them. The new recordings were dropped in and they don't match the tone and quality of the rest of the book. It is a fairly regular occurrence throughout the book and I found it distracting.

Tragic

Oppenheimer is a model for my life. I aspire to be intellectual and useful, but somehow I keep getting pushed back. Although my life is not nearly as useful as Oppenheimer's, it is also, fortunately, not nearly as tragic

A touching tribute to Oppenheimer

I'm so happy to have read this book. After watching the recent 2023 film entitled Oppenheimer by Christopher Nolan.

The book filled in many of the gaps that the film could not cover. And by the end, I actually had a few tears starting to Well up in my eyes. Although very long, I enjoyed every single second of the book and I feel like any person that wants to know about Oppenheimer's life coming, his struggles and accomplishments, and the way that the government treated. A hero scientist, then you should read this book.

Very well researched

This is a very interesting and complete biography including personal and professional aspects. This is an important contribution to the history of the dawning of the nuclear age including policy development, protagonists and antagonists, and the role of science.

Oppie unbound

Riveting as promised. Pretty even handed about a maddening subject, and not just as some glib motif about quanta and paradox. Makes you want to read books again. For a book as hefty as it’s subject is lean, the pacing is gripping. (Credit the editor!) The narrator mispronounces a few names a few times, but on the whole his recording is impressively consistent as he performs multiple characters and ethnicities over several generations and recording sessions. Does not sound stentorian as it could have, and that made it a nice long term time investment.

Long but well worth the time

The biography is engaging and energetic. The narration is a bit flat, but not to the point where one wants to give up listening. All in all a lesson worth learning.

A story little taught, in history or physics

4.5 stars, actually. I found it immensely informative history of Robert Oppenheimer and his times in physics. This is a very different perspective on many of his famous contemporaries. Readers might be interested in visiting the first large scale nuclear reactor, the B Reactor, at Hanford, WA. Tours are now available to the public.