The radium girls : the dark story of America's shining women

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Title:

The radium girls : the dark story of America's shining women

Author:

Moore, Kate (Writer and editor) author.

ISBN:

9781492649359

Physical Description:

xvi, 479 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm

General Note:

"Originally published in 2016 in the United Kingdom by Simon & Schuster UK."--Title page verso.

Includes reading group guide, pages [409]-410.

Contents:

Pt. 1. Knowledge -- Pt. 2. Power -- Pt. 3. Justice -- Epilogue -- Postscript.

Reading Level:

980 L Lexile

Subject Term:

Watch dial painters -- Diseases -- United States -- History.

Radium paint -- Toxicology.

Consumers' leagues -- United States -- History.

Industrial hygiene -- United States -- History -- 20th century.

World War, 1914-1918 -- Women -- United States.

World War, 1914-1918 -- War work -- United States.

Summary:

As World War I raged across the globe, hundreds of young women toiled away at the radium-dial factories, where they painted clock faces with a mysterious new substance called radium. Assured by their bosses that the luminous material was safe, the women themselves shone brightly in the dark, covered from head to toe with the glowing dust. With such a coveted job, these "shining girls" were considered the luckiest alive--until they began to fall mysteriously ill. As the fatal poison of the radium took hold, they found themselves embroiled in one of America's biggest scandals and a groundbreaking battle for workers' rights. The Radium Girls explores the strength of extraordinary women in the face of almost impossible circumstances and the astonishing legacy they left behind.

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Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Bayport Public Library	363.17 MOO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Oakdale Library	363.17 MOO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Park Grove Library (Cottage Grove)	363.17 MOO	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Amazon Charts Bestseller!

"The glowing ghosts of the radium girls haunt us still." --NPR Books

Discover the gripping and inspiring true story of The Radium Girls, a groundbreaking work by acclaimed author Kate Moore. Immerse yourself in this compelling narrative that unravels the extraordinary lives of these fearless women who fought against all odds.

The Curies' newly discovered element of radium makes gleaming headlines across the nation as the fresh face of beauty, and wonder drug of the medical community. From body lotion to tonic water, the popular new element shines bright in the otherwise dark years of the First World War.

Meanwhile, hundreds of girls toil amidst the glowing dust of the radium-dial factories. The glittering chemical covers their bodies from head to toe; they light up the night like industrious fireflies. With such a coveted job, these "shining girls" are the luckiest alive--until they begin to fall mysteriously ill.

But the factories that once offered golden opportunities are now ignoring all claims of the gruesome side effects, and the women's cries of corruption. And as the fatal poison of the radium takes hold, the brave shining girls find themselves embroiled in one of the biggest scandals of America's early 20th century, and in a groundbreaking battle for workers' rights that will echo for centuries to come.

With meticulous research and a keen eye for detail, Kate Moore delves into the lives of these remarkable individuals, capturing their resilience, strength, and unwavering determination. Through their stories, she exposes the shocking negligence and corporate cover-ups that plagued the radium industry, ultimately sparking a revolution in workplace safety.

The Radium Girls is a masterful blend of historical account and heartfelt tribute. Moore's vivid prose brings these forgotten heroines back to life, ensuring that their sacrifices and triumphs are forever etched in our collective memory. As you turn each page, you'll be captivated by their indelible legacy and inspired by their enduring spirit.

The Radium Girls is a must-read for history enthusiasts, feminists, and anyone seeking a remarkable story of resilience and empowerment.

Author Notes

Kate Moore is a New York Times bestselling author who writes across many genres, including biography, memoir, and history. She was also the director of the acclaimed play about the Radium Girls called 'These Shining Lives'.

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

British ghostwriter Moore traces the lives of more than a dozen American women who were employed as luminous watch-dial painters as early as 1917. She tells how these women, some barely in their 20s, were enchanted by high pay and the allure of the paint's luminescent substance: radium. Carefully researched, the work will stun readers with its descriptions of the glittering artisans who, oblivious to health dangers, twirled camel-hair brushes to fine points using their mouths, a technique called lip-pointing. By the end of 1918, one out of six American soldiers owned a luminous watch, but the women had begun losing their teeth and entire pieces of their jaws. Moore describes the gruesome effects of radiation exposure on these women's bodies, and she spares nothing in relaying the intense emotional suffering of their friends and families during subsequent medical investigations and court battles. In giving voice to so many victims, Moore overburdens the story line, which culminates with a 1938 headline trial during which a former employee of the Radium Dial Company collapsed on the stand and had to testify from bed. Moore details what was a "ground-breaking, law-changing, and life-saving accomplishment" for worker's rights; it lends an emotionally charged ending to a long, sad book. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* In 1917, the Radium Luminous Materials Corporation willingly employed young women, paid far better than most businesses, and had many enticing perks including the glow. Radium girls, most in their teens and early twenties, painted watch dials with a luminescent paint mixed with radium dust, which clung to their hair and clothes and produced a telltale glow about them as they walked home each evening. At the time, radium was used in cancer treatments and touted in expensive tonics, so the girls didn't question smoothing the radium-laden paintbrushes in their mouths, as instructed, or even painting their nails with them. But the women would soon suffer horrific pain and grotesquely shattered bones and teeth, and the company, it would be discovered, had known better. In 1928, just eight years after women had earned the right to vote, a group of former radium girls brought suit against the companies whose knowledge of radium's hazards, and careless disregard for them, had endangered and harmed them. This timely book celebrates the strength of a group of women whose determination to fight improved both labor laws and scientific knowledge of radium poisoning. English author Moore, who directed a play about the girls, writes in a highly readable, narrative style, and her chronicle of these inspirational women's lives is sure to provoke discussion and outrage in book groups.--Shaw, Stacy Copyright 2017 Booklist

Library Journal Review

In the early decades of the 20th century, young women in Orange, NJ, and Ottawa, IL, found well-paying jobs painting watches and dials with a luminous substance made from radium. The detailed nature of the painting required that the girls twirl the bushes in their mouth to form a precisely pointed tip. Though many people believed that radium was a miracle cure for various ailments, the reality was that the radio-active radium was poisoning the girls. Their teeth fell out, their jaws rotted away, they developed crippling ailments, and died. Moore presents a powerful narrative of the girls' illnesses and their legal struggles to seek compensation from employers who knowingly hid data on radiation sickness. Through personal diaries and letters, newspapers, and court records, Moore's text is riveting. The narration by Angela Brazil is of the highest quality, pulling listeners into the story. This is a tale of women who battled big business and focused the nation's attention on workplace hazards and the responsibilities of workplace safety. -VERDICT Anyone interested in women's history will find this work fascinating. ["Moore's well-researched narrative is written with clarity and a sympathetic voice that brings these figures and their struggles to life": LJ 2/15/17 starred review of the Sourcebooks hc.]-Patricia Ann Owens, formerly with Illinois Eastern Community Colls., Mt. Carmel © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

List of Key Characters	p. xi
Prologue	p. xv
Part 1 Knowledge	p. 1
Part 2 Power	p. 141
Part 3 Justice	p. 279
Epilogue	p. 377
Postscript	p. 397
Author's Note	p. 400
Acknowledgments	p. 405
Reading Group Guide	p. 409
Picture Acknowledgments	p. 411
Abbreviations	p. 413
Notes	p. 415
Select Bibliography	p. 461
Index	p. 468
About the Author	p. 480

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Booklist Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents

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