Ten-year-old Dewey Kerrigan, who has been living with her grandmother for some years, is reunited with her father and taken to Los Alamos where he is doing "war work." When he is called to Washington, she stays temporarily, with the Gordans, a family with two scientist parents, and a girl her own age, Suze. Suze does not appreciate her presence, and when Dewey's father is hit by a car and killed, Dewey moves in on a semi-permanent basis. Her grandmother is in a nursing home, and her mother abandoned her when Dewey was an infant, so she really has no where else to go.

The girls ultimately become friends, though not without some continued tension between them. One of the things that draws them together is how they are able to combine Dewey's knack for gadgets and technology, and Suze's artistic skills to create some one-of-a-kind contraptions.

In the backdrop of the kids concerns is the ever increasing tension as the scientists at Los Alamos rush to create and test the first atomic bomb, which is secretly held out as the hope to put an end to World War II, once and for all.

The characters are well-drawn and full-fleshed, and the historical and scientific information fits seamlessly into the story.

It's 1943 and eleven year-old Dewey Kerrigan is moving west to be with her father , a scientist for the government in New Mexico. Living on a government camp, Dewey visits the junkyard finding treasures for her "inventions" which poses speculation from the other children there. Dewey befriends Suze, a daughter of another scientist and they discover that the secret project their parents are working on will change the world. I thought this was a well written book and look forward to reading the sequel, White Sands, Red Menace which follows Dewey and Suze in 1946. Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award.

(#24 in the 2009 Book Challenge)

I thought it was lovely, the story of two girls living at Los Alamos during the war because their parents are research scientists. I loved the combination of the somewhat traditional childhood issues (not fitting in, being labeled as liking "boy" things like math and science, becoming obsessed with comic books) with the extremely unique setting of Manhattan Project. One of the things I liked the most is that the whole tone of the book is very in the moment -- the adults are smoking and drinking and swearing, there are very few concerns about radiation, it really leaves it up to the reader to decide how to feel about making atomic bombs.

Grade: A+

Recommended: To people who like historical American fiction for YAs, this is very good. Also great for kids who like math and science. It does touch upon a lot of adult themes, told with adult language, related to the war, so it is probably a good candidate for a book that adults would want to talk over with kids. ( )

This book takes place during WWII and goes back and forth between two girls who live in Los Alamos while their parents work on the Manhattan Project. Their quirks bring them together and I liked the historical references discussed within the novel. ( )

The source of the title for Ellen Klages' book, The Green Glass Sea, is a mystery to the end. So too, is everything about life on "The Hill," to the story's protagonist, 11-year-old Dewey Kerrigan. Since her mother's disappearance, Dewey has been living with her Nana while her father works in Boston. When Nana suffers a stroke and has to enter a Home, an Army car comes to pick up Dewey. She is surprised, not only because her father has not come for her himself, but also because her destination is not Boston, but New Mexico. There, in Los Alamos, New Mexico, she finds that her father and many of the world's brightest scientists are at work on a top-secret "gadget" to help end the war. Officially, their neighborhood, called "The Hill," their town, and even they themselves, do not exist in this mysterious desert community. They are allowed no phones or regular communication with the outside world.

The four girls walked down the middle of the road, with Betty and Joyce a little behind, giggling to each other. They headed south, the pine-studded canyon far over on their right. The road didn't have a name, none of them did. Suze thought this made it really hard to give anyone directions, but the army didn't want people knowing much about the Hill. Even if you lived there.

Dewey, a bright and inquisitive inventor herself, loves this strange new life. She has her father all to herself and hours of time to spend on her inventions. The only thing she does not like is the treatment that she receives at the hands of the other scientists' children, who call her Screwy Dewey and mock her handicap - a leg, shortened by an injury. Another young girl, Suze, becomes an unlikely friend due to circumstances beyond either of their control.

Suze and Dewey's life, and life itself, are about to change as two cataclysmic events unfold - the successful test of the atomic bomb and Dewey's own personal tragedy.

The Green Glass Sea, winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for historical fiction, is the story of what life was like for scientists and their families working on the atomic bomb at Los Alamos, New Mexico. In addition to the story of the young girls, Dewey and Suze, and their families, The Green Glass Sea poses the age-old questions of scientific ethics and "greater good, " as in this exchange between two of the scientists:

"Well, yes. We started for a good reason, and we've been working so hard. It was pleasure. It was excitement," he said. "But you stop thinking about - you know? You just stop. And now..."
" And now that we've seen what it can do. My god," Terry Gordon said, her voice raised, sounding angry. "They can't use it. Not on civilians. Not on anyone, for that matter. I mean, maybe as a demonstration, but -"

"That's not realistic, Terry, said Dr. Teller in his Hungarian accent. "It's no longer an experiment to be demonstrated. It's a weapon, to end this terrible war once and for all."

This is moving and slowly paced novel - giving the reader time to absorb the hot New Mexico summer, the single-mindedness of the pursuit, the dreary and secretive life on "the Hill," and the enormity of the "gadget's" importance. The book is told alternately from the viewpoints of Dewey and her new friend, Suze, and contains supplementary information from and an interview with the author, Ellen Klages. The book's only distraction was the author's peculiar choice to write one chapter in a present-tense voice. Highly recommended for ages 11 and up. ( )

Transporting, character driven historical YA fiction. WWII, the atomic age, the Trinity project seen through the eyes of smart, brave 11 year old Dewey. I loved that this book contained smart female characters and that it renewed my interest in this period of US history. I look forward to reading the sequel. ( )

Dewey gets to live with her father on The Hill in Los Alamos during World War II. Her father is a scientist working on the invention of what is referred to in the book as the gadget. Her mother abandoned the family when Dewey was an infant. When Dewey's dad, Jimmy, has to go to Washington DC, Dewey stays with the Gordon family. The Gordon's daughter, Suze, and Dewey don't get along so well at first.
I was pleasantly surprised and absorbed by this historical book that gives insight into the lives of the people working on developing the atomic bomb during World War II and living in the secret Los Alamos. The Green Glass Sea refers to the mineral that is created as a result of the test of the gadget. A lot of people and events are simply alluded to in the story, which is great because it doesn't slow the story down, but I wonder how much middle school students will connect events and people in the story with historical events and people. ( )

decidedly mediocre. i mean i kind of get what she was trying to do here, but damn. most of the book, i'm thinking "jeez, get on with it! what's the point here??" aaah!! ( )

I loved how Klages works in all the details of life on "The Hill" that made it all seem more real and secret. ( )

http://www.lonelymountain.net/books/j... ( )

Scientists from all over the country have moved with their families to a location in New Mexico to work on a secret project. Family life goes on, as they work on this super weapon to end the war. They realize exactly what they have created only after it is successfully tested in the New Mexico desert. ( )

Facinating story of a young girl growing up in the shadow of the Los Alamos science and research project which produced the first atomic bomb. It sent me the the internet to do some research and what I found was frightening and verified the information in the book. Though the main character is a child, I'm not sure that the topic would be understood by children. The issue raised might be better grasped by young adults. Very well written and researched ( )

Dewey Kerrigan and Suze Gordon don't have a lot in common. But they do share one thing: they're both children whose parents work at a secret New Mexico facility know as Los Alamos, not that they can tell anyone. The whole base, and everything their parents are working on is a secret. Known only as the "gadget" the device may help defeat the Nazis.

Covering around two years during the later part of World War II, Klages captures a bit of what it would have been like to grow up with a war on. For engineering-minded Dewey, life on the base isn't so bad. She gets to stay with her father, and access to lot of scientists and gear-heads who are happy to answer her questions. For Suze, it's less appealing. She feels like a prisoner, and wishes she saw more of her usually working, mostly-distracted parents. Not as much fun as a riveting action-adventure story, but interesting for all that. It would provide a gentler counterpoint to Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit or the Diary of Anne Frank. ( )

When her Nana goes to a nursing home, 11 year old Dewey Karrigan is whisked away from St. Louis to join her father in the secret city of Los Alamos, New Mexico. It is 1943 and officially, Los Alamos doesn't exist. Her father, and the other scientists and mathematicians who are living there are working hard to build a "gadget." The gadget and everything about it is secret, but they hope it will end the war world II. Dewey gets along well with the grown up scientists, but her junk yard exploration, part scavenging, machine inventing and building don't win her too many friends her own age especially not girls. ( )

Dewey is a wonderful perceptive character. Her limp makes her an outsider. Because her dad is a physicist and works for the government on the Manhattan Project, she moves from her grandmother's house to be with him in Los Alamos. She has no idea what his work entails except that the gadget they're working on is supposed to end the war, WWII. Dewey is shunned by most of the girls in the isolated community of scientists and military personnel, but is friends with some of the boys, Her passion is tinkering and she is working on making a radio with discarded junk she finds at the compound's dump. When her father is called to Washington, she moves in with Suze, another outcast. Suze resents her new roommate, especially since her mom seems to get on so well with Dewey, but with time their relationship grows.
The setting is unique, not one used often, especially in literature for youth and teens. Knowing the fate of people who witnessed the testing of the atomic bomb makes bittersweet. Beautiful writing. ( )

Notes:
Daughter of WWII scientist, tinkers, builds and learns about the impact of her Dad's job at Los Alamos National Lab. Recommend for ages 10-12

I listened to this book on CD, the reader was great. The book was a typical sad Jr/YA story about how a child is separated from her mom very young and then her father has to leave her with her Grandma who gets very sick and goes into the hospital. She gets to reunite with her dad only to have him die also. The stories setting was good as it was different but, many things in this story felt to disjointed. ( )

This book is good for girls who don't want a girly girl book, but who want a book with a little punch! I recomend this book for anyone who likes an easy read with a lot of meaning because its about World war II and what it does to the lives of these two girls ( )

April 2007 ( )

Interesting premise, but a bit slow paced for kids. Best for kids who may already be familiar with WW2. The story is subtle; though not particularly compelling, its messages about friendship, fitting in, and the effects of war on families were touching. ( )

Interesting look into the first experiments with nuclear technology. ( )

Comprehensively realized picture of life on The Hill, as the secret Los Alamos scientists’ colony during WWII was known. The story of two girls, Dewey and Suze. ( )

Dewey, a young girl who loves to dig around in junk piles to build contraptions (including an early clock radio) moves to Los Alamos to be with her father while he works on the "gadget," a top secret project. Dewey butts heads with Suze, a girl who has no use for weird girls who limp (one of Dewey's legs is shorter than the other and she wears a special shoe). When tragedy draws the girls together they find what they need in each other against the backdrop of the atomic bomb project.

Lovely story about WWII that doesn't deal directly with the holocaust in Germany. ( )

This book intertwines the stories of Dewey (called "Screwy Dewey" by her meaner classmates) and Suze (called "Truck" by her meaner classmates) who are thrust together while their parents are working on a top-secret "gadget" at Los Alamos, New Mexico. Dewey has come to live with her father. She's a brilliant inventor, more interesting in tinkering with metal parts than being in Girl Scouts and trying to get the other girls to like her. Suze hangs on the edge of the cool crowd, trying to impress them by making fun of Dewey, but she's never really accepted either.

When Dewey's father is sent to Washington, D.C., Dewey is sent to stay with Suze's family. Will the two ever get along? Will they ever find out what sort of top secret stuff their parents are working on? Will the war ever be over?

This book gives a look at a life seldom seen in other books. The characters are really strong, though imperfect, and there is plenty to learn. Great historical fiction. ( )