Awards
2007 Scott O'Dell Award Winner
Synopses & Reviews
It is 1943, and 11-year-old Dewey Kerrigan is traveling west on a train to live with her scientist father but no one, not her father nor the military guardians who accompany her, will tell her exactly where he is. When she reaches Los Alamos, New Mexico, she learns why: he's working on a top secret government program. Over the next few years, Dewey gets to know eminent scientists, starts tinkering with her own mechanical projects, becomes friends with a budding artist who is as much of a misfit as she is and, all the while, has no idea how the Manhattan Project is about to change the world. This book's fresh prose and fascinating subject are like nothing you've read before.
Review
"Many readers will know as little about the true nature of the project as the girls do, so the gradual revelation of facts is especially effective, while those who already know about Los Alamos's historical significance will experience the story in a different, but equally powerful, way." School Library Journal
Review
"The novel occasionally gets mired down in detail, but the characters are exceptionally well drawn, and the compelling, unusual setting makes a great tie-in for history classes." Booklist
Synopsis
In this remarkable debut novel, 11-year-old Dewey Kerrigan is traveling west on a train to live with her scientist father, but no one will tell her exactly where he is. It is 1943 and her destination is Alamos, New Mexico, where scientists are working on the Manhattan Project.
About the Author
Nebula Award-winning author Ellen Klages lives in San Francisco, California.
Kids Q&A
Read the Kids' Q&A with Ellen Klages