The Radioactive Boy Scout
by Ken Silverstein
Buy book: $10.04

In this page-turning biography, Silverstein explores one Boy Scout's out-of-control love affair with science and his astonishing attempt to build a nuclear reactor in his backyard.

 

I have read this book and it is spellbindingly frightening1. It is amazing to see how a bright young man (very young) could amass the amount of information and material to do what he was able to do. Unfortunately he was not aware of the awful hazards involved. A very important read.

I started to read this and was amazed - I did a lot of my growing up in Golf Manor! My mom, her siblings & my grandparents lived right on the corner of Pinto & Palomino Drives - and my grandparents owned that house until the early 90s when my grandmother passed away.

It's very spooky how they missed all of this by 5, 6 years.

I have only read the first days installment, but surely if he was intelligent enough to build the reactor, he must have realized the dangers? I look forward to the rest of the book.

I didn't think I would be interested in this, but read it anyway...its starting to grow on me and I am impatient for the next days installment! At first, I had to double check to be sure that what I was reading was indeed nonfiction...very scary and interesting!

I only wish my dear dad were still here to read this book. During my prep-school years the two of us worked on many science projects; his supervision and my drive were a dynamite combination that led to many awards and we created many fun things. Fortunately, no agencies ever had to be called to put out fires or eradicate dangerous substances.
:-) I can't wait for the next installment.