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The Radium Girls

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The Radium Girls

By: Kate Moore
Narrated by: Kate Moore
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About this listen

 Emma Watson’s Our Shared Shelf book club choice
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

All they wanted was the chance to shine. Be careful what you wish for…

‘The first thing we asked was, “Does this stuff hurt you?” And they said, “No.” The company said that it wasn’t dangerous, that we didn’t need to be afraid.’

As the First World War spread across the world, young American women flocked to work in factories, painting clocks, watches and military dials with a special luminous substance made from radium. It was a fun job, lucrative and glamorous – the girls shone brightly in the dark, covered head to toe in dust from the paint. However, as the years passed, the women began to suffer from mysterious and crippling illnesses. It turned out that the very thing that had made them feel alive – their work – was slowly killing them: the radium paint was poisonous.

Their employers denied all responsibility, but these courageous women – in the face of unimaginable suffering – refused to accept their fate quietly, and instead became determined to fight for justice.

Drawing on previously unpublished diaries, letters and interviews, The Radium Girls is an intimate narrative of an unforgettable true story. It is the powerful tale of a group of ordinary women from the Roaring Twenties, who themselves learned how to roar.
©2016 Kate Moore (P)2016 Simon & Schuster Americas Military United States Women Scary Heartfelt
All stars
Most relevant
I never knew about the happenings of radium in 1920 and the effects it had on all, not just the workers. Thank you for producing this book Kate Moore. My eyes are now open.

I never knew

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The Radium Girls is like no other! I gasped, cried, cheered and cried some more with my hand on my heart.

Katherine and her colleagues loved their job. They were paid very well to work hard with their new found friends. After all they were contributing to the war the best way they new how, painting watches, clocks and military dials. The paint was luminous and the powder managed to get everywhere.

“It was perfectly safe” they were told and of course they trusted their employer - until they began to get sick! And their employer denied responsibility. How are they to blame when they only supplied the poisonous radium paint?

The fight for justice while suffering through crippling pain is nothing short of heroic!

A must read! And the audiobook experience was breathtaking!

A story like no other!

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Great read and interesting topic. Make sure you read till the very end. It will not disappointment!

Wonderfully researched

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What a story - an insanely and heartbreaking true story of the horrors of what these women went through and the unbelievable fight they had to endure for justice. The author did a phenomenal job with this book and her emotion is felt through certain parts of the book.

A book we all should know about

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I first became aware of this story through the Criminal podcast and got the book as a result. What an amazing story, written in such a way that I rode all of the emotions of these poor women who were poisoned by the job and the subsequent cover ups by the companies involved. An enjoyable read and glad to know more about these women who helped pioneer WH&S requirements.

A rich and detailed retelling of an important story

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I throughly enjoyed this! It is not a book I would typically read however it was chosen by my book club for this month and I am so glad it was! I have learnt so much about something I knew nothing about. This book is so empowering. I could not stop listening to it.

Fascinating

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This was a beautiful journey into the history of radium and an in depth history into the horrible treatment and pain these women went through to provide a product that was so misunderstood.
It was really interesting following different women through the journeys. And heartbreaking to see the end result of such close work with them.

Fascinating look into history

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I'm loath to say I "enjoyed" this book due to the subject matter, but it made for incredibly captivating listening. Moved me to tears a couple of times. It is beautifully written, however some of the intonation/emphasis used in the narration is a little odd. Overall this book made me want to know more and I will definitely look up other books by this author.

Devastating but beautifully written

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I can’t stop thinking about this book! As devastating as the subject is, it is a story that needs to be told and the author showed so much heart and attention to detail and I think the “girls” would be so proud.

Captivating and heartbreaking

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An amazing story is an understatement, I have already bought the hard copy for my father. great read

An Awful Example of history well told

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