Radioactive by Lauren Redniss

I discovered Radioactive in an article I read online when it was nominated for the National Book Award last year. An illustrated biography of Marie Curie sounded intriguing to me, and it was receiving a lot of positive attention on the book blogs I follow, so I ordered it from Amazon. I stuck it on my bookshelf when it arrived and haven't looked at it since. As this is the year that I'm attempting to read all of the nonfiction I currently own, I decided to give it a try now.

This novel is a cross between a standard biography and a beautifully illustrated picture book. It tells the life story of Marie Curie, the famous physicist and chemist who discovered the elements radium and polonium. Redniss includes information about Curie's professional and personal life, as well as short explanations of the scientific concepts she studied. Additionally, small excerpts are inserted throughout the story describing how Curie's discoveries impacted the world after her death. Nuclear power, the atomic bomb, space travel, and many more examples are highlighted, emphasizing how monumental and important her work was. Each page in the novel is accented with stunning illustrations that serve to keep the reader completely engaged in the story.

Visually, this book is unlike anything else I have ever read. Each page is a beautiful work of art that invites you to linger as you read, admiring the details of the pictures. The illustrations are done in an interesting style, more quirky than "pretty," and they feel completely appropriate to the tone and topic of the story. Alongside the illustrations, photographs and documents are included too, and the contrast between the different forms of media is striking to look at. I was impressed with everything I saw, right down to the type of paper that it was printed on (nice and thick).  I loved reading, touching, and looking at this. The cover even glows in the dark in a tribute to the strange, otherworldly glow of radium.

The text itself is very well-written. There's quite a bit of it too-- the book isn't completely pictures. I learned a lot throughout my reading, and I developed a deep appreciation for Curie as a person and as a scientist. She was a woman of many impressive firsts. She was the first woman to be a professor at the Sorbonne, the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the only person to win two Nobel Prizes, the only person to win her Nobel Prizes in two different sciences, and the first woman to be entombed in the Paris Panthéon on her own merits. Her intelligence and courage are awe inspiring. She worked to further scientific achievement right up until she died, even though she knew it was her work that was killing her. I don't know if I could have continued doing work that was literally destroying my body, but Curie persevered. She was a truly remarkable woman, and Radioactive did an excellent job of conveying that.

This novel was more than just a nonfiction text. It was an experience. I absolutely fell in love with Radioactive and an going around recommending it to everyone I know like a crazy person. This has become a new favorite for me and I can't wait to explore Lauren Redniss' other works. My year of trying to read more nonfiction has started off brilliantly.


Challenge Tally:
True Books 2018: 1/18

Total Books Read in 2018: 3