Book Review: "The Radium Girls: The Dark Side of America's Shining Women"

Title: The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women 

Author: Kate Moore

Publisher: Sourcebooks

Copyright Date: 2017

Age Range: Grade 8 and up

"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." The Radium Girls summary.

I discovered this book while working on LitBit 6.2, where we talked about adult-teen crossovers. This is a book that I chose as a crossover book, because it deals with mature subject matter in a way that is comprehensible to youth without glossing over the facts. The book deals with the subjects such as medical malpractice, workers lied to and abused by their company, and  how to be strong in the face of impending death. This is a work of narrative nonfiction; Kate Moore has written the story of these ladies in a familiar way. Readers of all types can read and enjoy this book. Included in the book are photos of the women, both in their everyday life and at work. I was unable to source them for this blog, however. 

This book would be excellent for book report assignments, augmenting history classes, and just reading for fun. There is much that this book brings; historical facts, emotional connections, and caution to readers to always stand up for themselves and be aware of the world around them.

This book won the GoodReads Choice Award for History and Biography in 2017, and is a nominee for the 2019 Lincoln Award.