A good book of letters should bring its subject to life for the reader. This book is dry to the point of being brittle. At no time time during the reading of this book did I get any sense of what Oppenheimer was feeling or experiencing. Oppenheimer was involved with one of the pivotal events of this century and the whole experience comes off like a trip to a neighborhood store. The recollections mentioned in the title are not those of Oppenheimer but of friends and family. Like the rest of the book their thoughts and memories add little to the understanding of Oppenheimer's life and work.

J. Robert Oppenheimer was better at keeping himself hidden than most people, and you won't learn a lot about him from these letters, but it does a give a rare, patial glimpse of a very mysterious person.

This book is not meant as general reading. For more colorful writing, see Smith's _A Peril and a Hope_. Letters and Recollections is, however, an incredibly valuable resource for those of us researching the time period and Oppenheimer. There were letters, interviews, and insights that I simply could not have obtained anywhere else. Smith has a personal connection with Los Alamos, and that shows in her writing and sources. She gives an side to Oppenheimer like no other book I've read (and trust me, I've read a lot of them). Thank you, A.K.S.!