The devil reached toward the sky : an oral history of the making & unleashing of the atomic bomb / Garrett M. Graff.
On the 80th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, the Pulitzer Prize finalist whose work is 'oral history at its finest' (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) delivers an epic narrative of the atomic bomb's creation and deployment, woven from the voices of hundreds of scientists, generals, soldiers, and civilians. ... Drawing from dozens of oral history archives and hundreds of books, reports, letters, diaries, and transcripts from across the US, Japan, and Europe, Graff masterfully blends the memories and perspectives from the known and unknown--key figures like J. Robert Oppenheimer, General Leslie Groves, and President Truman; the crews of the B-29 bombers; and the haunting stories of the Hibakusha--the 'bomb-affected people.' Both a testament to human ingenuity and resilience and a compelling drama told by the participants who lived it, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky is a singular, profound, and searing book about the inception of our most powerful weapon and its haunting legacy.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781668092392
- ISBN: 1668092395
- ISBN: 9781668092408
- ISBN: 1668092409
- Physical Description: xxxii, 567 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps ; 25 cm
- Edition: First Avid Reader Press hardcover edition.
- Publisher: New York, New York : Avid Reader Press, 2025.
- Copyright: ©2025
Content descriptions
- General Note:
- Color maps on lining papers.
- Bibliography, etc. Note:
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 517-534) and index.
- Formatted Contents Note:
- Author's note -- Foreword: Dawn at Trinity -- Part I Exploring the atom. Particles unseen ; Darkness falls on Europe ; Fleeing fascism ; Adjusting to the New World ; The M.A.U.D. Committee ; December 7, 1941 -- Part II Imagining a bomb. Setting up the Met lab ; FDR's OK ; Creating the Manhattan Engineering District ; Three big decisions ; Making the pile ; Chain reaction -- Part III Making the bomb. Oak Ridge: creating the Clinton Engineer Works ; Oak Ridge: Y-12 ; Oak Ridge: living inside the gates ; Oak Ridge: making U-235 ; Los Alamos: Project Y ; Los Alamos: working on the mesa ; Life on Bathtub Row ; Oak Ridge: glimpsing plutonium ; Los Alamos: designing the bomb ; Hanford: life in a construction camp ; Hanford: making plutonium en masse ; Hanford: the B Reactor -- PArt IV Readying the bomb. Boeing's bomber ; Code name Silverplate ; Training the 509th ; Spring 1945 ; 100 tons of TNT ; Selecting the targets ; The interim committee ; Trinity ; Potsdam with Truman -- Part V Unleashing the bomb. At Tinian ; Moving the bomb ; The day before ; Code name Centerboard ; Ground zero in Hiroshima ; Landing at Tinian ; Hiroshima burning ; Reaction to the bomb ; The day after in Hiroshima ; Mission #16 ; Ground zero at Nagasaki ; The return of Bockscar ; Afterward in Nagasaki ; V-J Day ; The sickness -- Epilogue -- Acknowledgments -- A note on sources -- Source notes -- Index -- Image credits.
Search for related items by subject
- Subject:
- Manhattan Project (U.S.)
Atomic bomb > United States > History.
Atomic bomb victims > Japan.
Military planning > United States > History > 20th century.
World War, 1939-1945 > United States.
World War, 1939-1945 > Japan.
United States > History > 1933-1945.
Japan > History > 1926-1945. - Genre:
- Oral histories.
Informational works.
Available copies
- 46 of 54 copies available at NC Cardinal.
- 1 of 1 copy available at Madison County Public Library. (Show)
Holds
- 2 current holds with 54 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison Main Library | 355.825 GRA (Text) | 30229101317781 | Adult New Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Albemarle Main Library | 940.54 Gra (Text) | 31010000903866 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Albert Carlton - Cashiers Community Library | 355.8 G (Text) | 39493110175710 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Ashe County Public Library | 355.825 GRA (Text) | 50503300495266 | Adult New Nonfiction | Checked out | 08/17/2026 |
| Beaufort Main | 940.54 GRAFF (Text) | 34208900258558 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Bogue Banks | HISTORY WAR WW2 GRAFF (Text) | 34208900258541 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Bordeaux Library | 355.8251 GRA (Text) | 31781069156675 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Braswell Memorial Main Library | 355.8 Gra (Text) | 37807000072958 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Camden County Library | 940.54 GRA (Text) | 39488900318801 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Clemmons Branch | 355.825 G 2025 (Text) | 0112524731956 | Adult New Nonfiction | Checked out | 08/13/2026 |
Accessibility Features
Summary:
On the 80th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, the Pulitzer Prize finalist whose work is 'oral history at its finest' (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) delivers an epic narrative of the atomic bomb's creation and deployment, woven from the voices of hundreds of scientists, generals, soldiers, and civilians. ... Drawing from dozens of oral history archives and hundreds of books, reports, letters, diaries, and transcripts from across the US, Japan, and Europe, Graff masterfully blends the memories and perspectives from the known and unknown--key figures like J. Robert Oppenheimer, General Leslie Groves, and President Truman; the crews of the B-29 bombers; and the haunting stories of the Hibakusha--the 'bomb-affected people.' Both a testament to human ingenuity and resilience and a compelling drama told by the participants who lived it, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky is a singular, profound, and searing book about the inception of our most powerful weapon and its haunting legacy.
