109 East Palace

Great Listen

I have long been fascinated by the Manhattan Project and what happened at Los Alamos and have read a number of books on the subject. When I saw a review of "109 East Palace", I knew this was a book that would interest me. I was delighted to find it available on Audible and it was as good as I expected. My only criticism is that the only available version on Audible is abridged. I have an aversion to abridged books. It's like looking at a balck and white copy of the Mona Lisa and trying to gain some sense of the impact of the original. I realize some people who are in a rush prefer them but I wish we had a choice of abridged and unabridged versions as we do with some Audible titles. If you are interested in the history of Los Alamos, this is a book you should have.

27 of 27 people found this review helpful

A book of personalities, surprisingly intriguing

The sound quality is great, the narration is clear and professional. Oddly there is a dreamy sentimental quality about the production ( I mean this in a good way), so much of the book feels friendly and informative like listening to a favorite clear minded Aunt filling you in on the missing pieces of handed down family stories. Finally, you feel like you have the whole picture given to you by one who knows, someone who was there - no more rumors! Probably not the best book to listen too if you are missed some important hours of sleep, the narrator's voice is so calm and soothing you may very well find yourself studying the undersides of your eyelids.

The prelude to the book is read by the author which, personally, I appreciate. It is surprising how much personal and reflective material has been out there simply waiting for J.Conant to collect and organize. She's done a good job of presenting information that could easily be boring. In a straight forward way she uses everyday details and reflections found in seemingly mundane sources of scientists, office workers, and their family members involved in this enormous enterprise in such a way that it's easy to feel like I would recognize 1950's Los Alamos if I stumbled on it through a time warp.

I especially enjoyed the tidbits that described what outsiders thought about this mysterious place, and descriptions of the conditions within the community. Good book. Balanced writing of a touchy subject. This is a book about people and places not of political positioning or the mechanical creation of the bomb. Easily recommendable.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

BRILLIANT MINDS

Where does 109 East Palace rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Top 5. I am now on a Manhattan project binge.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I visited Sante Fe, saw 109 E Palace and stayed at the La Fonda before I heard the book. I couldn't get enough. I knew next to nothing about the Manhattan Project and nothing at all about the men involved. This moving little book is a great place to start if you have any interest in the MP. I can imagine the tzunami of men coming and going from that town 50 or 60 years ago. This is a great book.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Some Interesting Information but Not Well Written

This story gives some interesting information about the Manhattan Project and the Los Alamos nuclear bomb development but it isn't very well written. Too much emphasis is given to Oppenheimer's love life and not enough on what it was like to live in this community and what was involved in creating The Gadget. If you a looking for general information about the Manhattan Project, I think you would want to include this in your reading, just be ready to wade through some junk.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

The book is great.

the book gives a clear understanding of the impact of the events that ended world war two.Las Alamos is a wonderful place to visit.

Recommended

Wonderful story and essential reading for anyone interested in the history of Los Alamos. Well read, unfortunate that it is abridged

Don't be surprised if there are parts missing

I read from a hardback version of this book and I think the current version must be different or something because there were so many paragraphs of chapters missing from the audio recording that I had to stop and read in the actual book.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

Worth the listen twice

A fascinating account of the humanity behind one of the greatest and scariest events in all of science. Well written and announced.

Enjoyed the history.....

What made the experience of listening to 109 East Palace the most enjoyable?

It walked you through the history of the Manhattan Project.

What about Anne Twomey’s performance did you like?

Great detail!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes it was well read and interesting.