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.

I will read absolutely anything Garrett Graff writes but I was truly over the moon when I saw that his newest work took a look at the development of the atomic book. We're all somewhat familiar with the story but Graff's use of oral history gives The Devil Reached Toward the Sky an edge, putting the reader in the mind of those integrally involved in the development of the most influential technological innovation of the 20th century.

This book is absolutely amazing.

Graff does such a great job of bringing in a ton of information and history and making it easy to digest and fascinating to follow.

There are a ton of books about the making of the atomic bomb, World War 2, and the end of the war (when the nuclear bombs were dropped on Japan), but I feel that Graff really does a great job in bringing it all together into one book.

It is a long book, but nothing feels unnecessary in terms of building the story Graff is telling.

I highly recommend this book.

This review is based upon an advance copy provided by the publisher on NetGalley,

Just in time for the 80th Anniversary of the deployments at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Garrett Graf has given us what is likely to be the definitive oral history of the people, places and policies behind the Manhattan project., and the profound human toll it exacted. Though massive, the book is well worth the reading time investment, and I recommend it for adult general readers as well as college classroom usage, in whole or excerpted Coursepack form.

Garrett M. Graff is back! Nobody does oral history like Graff, and The Devil Reached Toward the Sky only affirms that. While you do need to be able to get through a lot of science that didn't always feel fascinating, keep going, because you will be fascinated. And also disgusted and might cry like I did. The strongest parts of this book were the ones dealing with the aftermath, and I can't recommend this enough.

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.