The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women
The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women, by Kate Moore
Summary:
The year is 1917. In Orange, New Jersey, 70 small-town young women were thrilled to have found the perfect job. They were hired by the United States Radium Factory to apply special paint to the tiny dials of watches. The paint allowed the watches to glow in the dark. The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women is the story of these women.
The watches were first used by American soldiers but their popularity quickly spread to the public. The demand for watches grew quickly. Soon thousands of young women were employed in three factories, with factories also opening in Ottawa, Il, and Waterbury, CT.
The special paint that made the watches glow contained radium. At that time radium was also thought to be a wonder drug by the medical community. The woman working for this comapny thought they were safe.
For this delicate job (just imagine painting the tiny numbers on a watch face), the young women were instructed to make a fine point on the brush by placing the brush between their lips. They did this over and over each day. In addition, their goal was to paint 250 watch dials each day.
What these women did not know was that they were ingesting radium with every brushstroke. They became known as “The Radium Girls”. Also, they were repeatedly told that the paint was harmless. As you will find out in this epic non-fiction book, it was anything but harmless.
My review:
The detailed explanation of the effects of radium makes this book difficult to read. The harsh reality is that this really happened. Those in charge of the factory denied any wrongdoing, despite strong evidence of their misrepresentations.
Moreover, I have relatives that lived in one of the towns that employed these women to paint the clock faces with this toxic paint. I am so grateful that none of them worked for this horrid company. Meanwhile, my heart breaks for those women and their families affected by this tragic situation.
In conclusion, I believe this is a book that everyone should read.
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars.
If you liked this book you may also like Upstairs at the Whith House: My Life with the First Ladies, by J. B. West.
Article about radium girls from The Atomic Heritage Foundation:
https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/radium-girls
Book review:
https://www.npr.org/2017/04/27/525765323/the-radium-girls-is-haunted-by-glowing-ghosts
Author website:
http://www.kate-moore.com/writing/4583697052
Book discussion questions:
https://www.bookbrowse.com/reading_guides/detail/index.cfm/book_number/3592/the-radium-girls