It is 1943, and eleven-year-old Dewey Kerrigan is en route to New Mexico, to live with her mathematician father. Soon she arrives at a town that, officially, doesn't exist. It is called Los Alamos, and it is abuzz with activity, as scientists and mathematicians from all over America and Europe work on the biggest secret of all"the gadget." None of themnot J. Robert Oppenheimer, the director of the Manhattan Project; not the mathematicians and scientists; and least of all, Deweyknow how much "the gadget" is about to change their lives.
"Klages makes an impressive debut with an ambitious, meticulously researched novel set during WWII...The author provides much insight into the controversies surrounding the making of the bomb and brings to life the tensions of war experienced by adults and children alike."
--Publishers Weekly, starred review--
"The story, an intense but accessible page-turner, firmly belongs to the girls and their families; history and strory are drawn together with confidence."
--The Horn Book, starred review--