A Fierce Radiance audiobook

Thank you Goodreads--another First Reads win!Belfer is a great story teller. I loved the protagonist, Claire Shipley, a photojournalist with Life magazine, caught up in the scientific world of penicillin research during World War II, and the political intrigue of the early 1940s. She was definitely a woman ahead of her time—strong and career oriented. The book is well researched and well-told. I was intrigued from beginning to end. The details surrounding World War II and life at the time in New York City are fascinating and a real education. Among other things one learns about medical experiments performed in Japanese Internment camps (specifically Camp Minidoka in Idaho); that “Fifth Columnists” was the term used for Japanese, German and Italian-American traitors who supported their native countries during the war; and that Bund referred to Nazi sympathizers who had gone underground. And, I got a kick out of this piece of trivia—servicemen injected hothouse cherry tomatoes with vodka to make portable Bloody Mary’s.I found myself googling various historical characters to learn more about them. I’d never heard of Vannevar Bush (no relation to the Presidents Bush) who not only was in charge of penicillin distribution to the military, but was also a primary organizer of the Manhattan Project. Belfer describes Henry Luce as being unapproachable and his wife, Clare Booth Luce, is referred to as a holy terror, snobbish, condescending and mean-spirited. John D. Rockefeller is depicted as a gaunt old man who handed out small change and leered at pretty young nurses. I was amazed at how many personal links I have with this story—my father was a research physician and developed two drugs still on the market; I had scarlet fever when I was in 2nd grade and was isolated in an upstairs bedroom. My dad gave me quarters to swallow huge sulfa tablets. This was after WW II, but I know even then my dad was very cautious about the use of penicillin as your body can acclimate itself to it until the drug no longer works. Before digital photography took over my life, I was a dark room photographer. Claire in the darkroom printing and manipulating photos brought back memories of my days in the photo lab at IU. My love of baseball is even represented when Claire attends a Dodgers vs. Pirates game held early because of the dim-outs. Fans were instructed to throw foul balls back to be sent to the Armed Service’s teams.. . . and though the story primarily takes place in New York, it ends in Indiana, my home state. Belfer uses descriptive imagery much like she’s telling the story through the lens of a camera as the repeating ‘hats’ image shows; i.e. her fashion shoot at the Brooklyn Navy Yard with the models wearing Johnny Jeep hats (small round khaki hats with an all-around brim inspired by army hats). And, when she covers the aftermath of the Coconut Grove nightclub fire in Boston—with hundreds dead and hundreds more injured, her final shot is of a stack of hats found at the scene. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Belier, herself, is a photographer.I loved the truth of this novel—as the author explains it—the shades of grey. Besides the thrill of adventure, the revelation of that part of U.S. history and the correlation of politics and science; we learn through her characters that we can’t expect perfection from others. It’s a fascinating and worthwhile read. I’m definitely going to look for Belfer’s other book “City Of Light.” She made me a fan with this one.

A Fierce Radiance' by Lauren Belfer is a compelling novel. Comprised of several genres, this is a book to pick up and savor. I was kept riveted by a combination of history, romance and mystery. This mix makes for athrilling ride that kept me enthralled throughout.The era is 1941 through 1944. The book opens just after Japan has bombed Pearl Harbor. Our country has declared war and young men are being drafted orsigning up for the military. Some of us can still picture this era. For those of you who are younger, let me give you a taste. Disease is rampant. There is no cure for polio, streptococcus infections, pneumonia, sepsis, cholera,tetanus or scarlet fever. There is a season for every illness and parents are frightened all the time that their children will die. Adults are frightened for their own lives. On top of that, our nation is at war and, other than sulfa drugs, which have limited curative ability, the United States has no medications to halt infection or disease for its own military.Claire Shipley is a successful photographer for `Life Magazine', the most popular news magazine in the nation. She has already lost one child to sepsis eight years ago. One day Emily fell on the sidewalk and cut her knee. A few days later she was dead. Her younger son, Charlie, is still living but Claire fears for his life at every turn. Claire is assigned to do a photo essay on penicillin, a new drug that is supposedly being developed. This miracle drug, developed from a green mold, is an antibiotic that is said to have the power to stop gram positive infections in their tracks.Dr. James Stanton is a physician who is at the forefront of penicillin's development so, in a sense, he holds the key to life and death. However, the supply of this drug is very limited and it is being produced in jars, bedpans and whatever other containers can be found. James meets Claire during the photo shoot and sparks fly. Theirs is a love at first sight but they don't have much time because James is immediately sent to the war front. His job is to utilize the short supplies of penicillin on the injured servicemen.Meanwhile, government agencies are becoming directly involved in the production of penicillin. Money is being allocated to institutes and scientists involved in its development. The pharmaceutical companies are ordered to cooperate rather than compete. The government declares that there is to be no patent on penicillin. Rather, it is to be developed by all private companies and utilized for wartime efforts.James' sister, Tia, is working on an alternative type of antibiotic, one that comes from the soil. The pharmaceutical companies get wind of this and start pouring their efforts into what they term `the cousins' to penicillin - alternative antibiotics that work on gram negative as well as gram positive infections. This is being done in secret. Claire gets wind of this and tries to get to the bottom of things. Now things get very interesting and the book becomes a real thriller.I loved Lauren Belfer's first novel, and 'A Fierce Radiance' does not disappoint. She has done her research. I am usually not a great fan of historical novels, but this one is different than most others. It grabs you and may even rip your shirt in the process. I suggest that you buckle down for a satisfying read. You'll be so riveted you may not be able to come up for air or find the time to sew your shirt.

The city is New York, the time is the Second World War, and the issue is Penicillin."A Fierce Radiance" is a well told story that uses th above three items to weave a story, true or untrue, about the emergence of penicillin into the medical world.Prior to penicillin one of the deadliest conditions for man was an infection. Even a small cut could mean death within days if infected with a staphylococci strain.CFlaire Shipley, a Life photographer, has lost a daughter to an infection and finds herself immersed in the effort to find a way to cultivate penicillin quickly and in mass quantities.She finds herself working at a hospital where Dr. James Staton and his sister are heading this research. Dr. Stanton becomes head of the government agency that is coordinating the effort for penicillin and is responsible to ensure that the Pharmaceutical Companies are putting out maximum effort on the drug.The problem is the companies are not putting out much effort on penicillin because the government has deemed that they cannot realize a profit from the drug. The drug is needed desperately to ward off infection of injured soldiers. The drug companies are putting their efforts into "cousin" drugs that are derivatives of penicillin, so that they can make a hugh profit manufacturing a drug not controlled by the government.Claire's father, whom she has been estranged from for years, is very wealthy and has purchased a drug company. She strongly suspects that her father is following along the same steps as the other drug companies. In fact, he has purchased a formula that was discovered by Dr. Stanton's murdered sister.Her father's company is first to market a penicillin "cousin". Although untested, Claire, her father, and Dr. Stanton must decide to us the drug on Claire's son, who will definately die without the drug.A truly excellent story that, true or untrue, gives a wonderful picture of this time in history.

This novel is enormous in scope. It covers lots of topics and crosses several genres. I’m not mad about it. I love a meaty book!Historical fiction set shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, A Fierce Radiance also includes a heart-wrenching love story, a murder mystery and infuriating corporate greed. Lauren Belfer weaves these elements seamlessly into an intriguing story that swept me in immediately. It was not a difficult read, but it definitely requires concentration. The background of the novel involves the development of penicillin and its “cousins,” later known as antibiotics. It is hard to fathom that less than 80 years ago, a minor scratch could end up being fatal due to infection. These medications, which we take so for granted now, were mysterious and risky, and the government was in competition with pharmaceutical companies to control their use. It is easy to see, from reading this history, how Big Pharma has become Big Pharma. Oh yes, the corporate manipulation isn’t new, folks!Character development is exceptional, plot flows. If I have one complaint, it is that occasionally I got bogged down in lengthy, detailed descriptions. But I will definitely read this author again.

It’s a about the production of penicillin after the outbreak of the WWII. The story deals the clinical awakening to the effect of this new drug, and the commercial dynamics of the pharmaceutical industry racing to perfect mass-production of the drug all the while struggling while governments came to grips with the military consequences of the drug. But what makes this really gripping for me is the way the author inter weaves the clinical, long term commercial and short term military and governmental forces at work with the personal aspects of key characters, doctors and photographers who fall in love, the reunification of parents and children and murder etc etc By the final days of the war every soldier had penicillin in his kit. The NYT calls it a death-haunted medical thriller it’s a superb read.

Writing: 5/5 Characters: 5/5 Plot: 4.5/5How have I never read this book? This will definitely be one of my top reads of 2022. Historical fiction immersed in the drive to commercialize the production of penicillin for the troops. Here’s a shocking statistic — over 50% of the deaths in the Civil War were from infection; over 30% in the “Great War.”The story opens with Claire Shipley — photojournalist for Life magazine — covering the story of early trials on penicillin for humans. 1941 — just days after Pearl Harbor — a man makes an almost miraculous recovery from near death by the injection of penicillin — only to die days later when researchers literally run out of the drug: it is that difficult to produce. Together the U.S. Government, the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research (a real place — look it up), and reluctantly drafted pharmaceutical companies race to find a process to produce enough of the miracle drug to save the men on the front.Part love story, part murder mystery, part home front war story, and part industry story, the author does an incredible job of making war-time New York City come to life. New York is a great setting for historical fiction as it is and always has been teeming with life, innovation, and secrets. While the main characters are fictional, the historical characters (e.g. Vannevar Bush, Henry Luce, Claire Booth Luce, Margaret Bourke-White, Margaret Sanger, Jack Reed) are presented realistically (without any fictionalized access to their inner thoughts). Beautiful writing — I highlighted a lot of quotes in the (physical) book but I was too lazy to transcribe them :-(In addition to the description of the historical setting, what I loved about the book were the characters. Each had their own passion and the author explored the depth of their work, their attraction to it, and the kind of personalities and background that made them so suited to it. The description of Claire and her photos were completely absorbing and beautifully described; Dr. James Staunton leading the research at the Rockefeller Institute; his sister Tia the mycologist, exploring dirt samples from around the world to find other antibacterial “cousins” to penicillin; and Edward Rutherford, one of the very earliest venture capitalists, describing the process of making money from opportunity.Completely captivating. This was her second novel, published in 2010. Novels 1,3, and 4 are all excellent as well!

To win a SIGNED copy of A Fierce Radiance visit: REVIEW: A front-runner for my #1 book of 2010!!A Fierce Radiance is an extraordinary novel which comes along once every few years. I absolutely fell in love with this book and can't stop talking about it!!A Fierce Radiance is set in the early 1940s during the first days following the attack on Pearl Harbor. The story follows the life of Claire Shipley, a beautiful and talented photojournalist for Life magazine, whose boss sends her to cover the testing of a potentially revolutionary new medicine made from green mold - penicillin. She is responsible for capturing the iconic images Americans look forward to seeing in Life Magazine. Living in New York City, Claire is a single mother to an 8 year old boy, Charlie. She lost her daughter, Emily, when she was only seven, from a scrape on the knee resulting in a blood infection. Emily's life would have been saved by penicillin. In 1941, the United States had just entered WWII, and "our boys" are dying on and off the battlefield from infection. The government pleads with the seven largest pharmaceutical companies to make penicillin their top priority. In the midst of this war-time drama, two people are brought together, fall in love, and are thrust into blackmail, espionage and murder, all of which revolve around the potential for mass production of a new blockbuster drug. Penicillin - the weapon of war.The words leaped off the page and came to life for me. Belfer's engaging writing transported me to war-time New York, the 1940s, an era that I'm already a bit obsessed with, and she got everything right. I feel like I'm describing a movie when I tell you the dialogue is engaging and fast-paced, the costumes are stunning, and the scenery is perfection. It may sound silly, but I loved that Belfer described all the women's clothes, hair and make-up. She was descriptive without taking away from the action and helped me to become even more absorbed into this important time in the world's history. I have read an abundance of books that have World War II as their back-drop, but this was my first perspective of the war from this angle. I also live in New Jersey, the home of several of the actual pharmaceutical companies mentioned in the novel, which gave me a whole new look at an industry of which I am already very familiar. There is so much on-the-edge-of-your-seat drama in this race to the finish. Which company will be first in discovering how to mass produce penicillin? Will they share their discovery for the good of the country? Will they be able to do it in time to save our soldiers? Will they be able to do it in time to save our children? How far are people willing to go to keep or steal secrets? This compelling novel was about loss, fear, hope, tragedy, war, suffering, government, corruption, fortune, greed and victory. For me, it was a love story. Claire Shipley meets Dr. James Stanton, a handsome doctor at The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, and what follows is the kind of love story they make movies about. Will they survive this race to save lives?When I finish a book like this, I need more, so I spent a lot of time online researching penicillin, the pharmaceutical companies mentioned in the book, as well as some of the people and places. I don't need to share my discoveries with you, because in the Historical Note after the end of her novel, Belfer explains to readers which parts of her story were true to history and which were fiction. It's extremely scary the role that some of the pharmaceutical companies, which still exist today, played in WWII - and I'm not talking about the drugs that saved lives. When people talk about the Great American Novel...this is it! It has everything a reader could possibly ask for - intriguing characters, intense drama, interesting plot, a heavy dose of reality, an epic love story and it's all bound together with Lauren Belfer's brilliant writing.

Lauren Belfer, A Fierce RadianceLauren Belfer’s novel is stunning–in pacing, characterization and setting. Set during the trans formative era of World War II, it captures a period in more ways than I can satisfactorily say. From people listening to radio reports on war developments, to larger issues such as the Federal Government’s critical role in medical research. There are several principal characters. Claire Shipley is a single Mom, and a photographer for Life magazine. James Stanton is a physician at the Rockefeller Institute in NYC. Their paths cross because James is directing research which will lead to penicillin and Claire is assigned the story.Claire is drawn adroitly and Pelfer knows her film photography. The descriptions of her shoots, how she handles artificial and natural light, are crafted by someone who knows film photography–photography before the rise of digital cameras and the mistaken notion that anyone with a camera can take good pictures.Dr. James Stanton is equally well developed. Belfer captures his quest for the successful drug with the excitement persistence and frustration such a quest necessarily entailed. His growing attraction to and love for Claire is etched beautifully. It’s not a Hollywood story. Lots of twists.Tia Stanton, Jamie’s sister, is a scientist too, also eagerly perusing cures from mold—which she found “much easier to deal with than men.” (That’s a good example of the author’s way with words.) Her work is cut short, a layer of mystery and betrayal.And there is Claire’s father. When he Greenwich Village radical wife left him, he lost contact with his daughter. Renewing that contact is another strong sub-theme. A millionaire he buys a firm experimenting with penicillin, and it’s “cousins”—another layer of mystery and betrayal.There are other characters, and I've only hinted at the story line. Perhaps that’s just as well. It’s better that you devour this on your own. It’s a bravo from me.

What I love about historical fiction is that a story is told with elements of actual history woven into it. So little is known about the race to mass distribute penicillin during WWII. This story follows a Life magazine photographer as she captures the early days of penicillin and gets caught up in the politics and financial aspects of this groundbreaking and lifesaving discovery. Throw in a murder, a Russian spy, thievery and human emotion, you get a great read and a small history lesson! Definitely a great beach book as I read half of it with my feet in the Atlantic Ocean!