DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — President Trump’s comments Thursday suggesting the United States will restart its testing of nuclear weapons upends decades of American policy in regards to the bomb, but come as Washington’s rivals have been expanding and testing their nuclear-capable arsenals.
Nuclear weapons policy, once thought to be a relic of the Cold War, increasingly has come to the fore as Russia has made repeated atomic threats to both the U.S. and Europe during its war on Ukraine. Moscow also acknowledged this week testing a nuclear-powered-and-capable cruise missile called the Burevestnik, code-named Skyfall by NATO, and a nuclear-armed underwater drone.
China is building more ground-based nuclear missile silos. Meanwhile, North Korea just unveiled a new intercontinental ballistic missile it plans to test, part of a nuclear-capable arsenal likely able to reach the continental U.S.
The threat is starting to bleed into popular culture as well, most recently with director Kathryn Bigelow ‘s new film “A House of Dynamite.”
But what does Trump’s announcement mean and how would it affect what’s happening now with nuclear tensions? Here’s what to know.
Trump’s comments came in a post on his Truth Social website just before meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping. In it, Trump noted other countries testing weapons and wrote: “I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately.”
The president’s post raised immediate questions. America’s nuclear arsenal is maintained by the Energy Department and the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semiautonomous agency within it — not the Defense Department. The Energy Department has overseen testing of nuclear weapons since its creation in 1977. Two other agencies before it — not the Defense Department — conducted tests.
Trump also claimed the U.S. “has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country.” Russia is believed to have 5,580 nuclear warheads, according to the Washington-based Arms Control Association, while the U.S. has 5,225. Those figures include so-called “retired” warheads waiting to be dismantled.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute further breaks the warhead total down, with the U.S. having 1,770 deployed warheads with 1,930 in reserve. Russia has 1,718 deployed warheads and 2,591 in reserve.
The two countries account for nearly 90% of the world’s atomic warheads.
U.S. last carried out a nuclear test in 1992
From the time America conducted its “Trinity” nuclear bomb detonation in 1945 to 1992, the U.S. detonated 1,030 atomic bombs in tests — the most of any country. Those figures do not include the two nuclear weapons America used against Japan in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II.
The first American tests were atmospheric, but they were then moved underground to limit nuclear fallout. Scientists have come to refer to such tests as “shots.” The last such “shot,” called Divider as part of Operation Julin, took place Sept. 23, 1992, at the Nevada National Security Sites, a sprawling compound some 65 miles from Las Vegas.
America halted its tests for a couple of reasons. The first was the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. The U.S. also signed the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty in 1996. There have been tests since the treaty, however — by India, North Korea and Pakistan, the world’s newest nuclear powers. The United Kingdom and France also have nuclear weapons, while Israel long has been suspected of possessing atomic bombs.
But broadly speaking, the U.S. also had decades of data from tests, allowing it to use computer modeling and other techniques to determine whether a weapon would successfully detonate. Every president since Barack Obama has backed plans to modernize America’s nuclear arsenal, whose maintenance and upgrading will cost nearly $1 trillion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The U.S. relies on the so-called “nuclear triad” — ground-based silos, aircraft-carried bombs and nuclear-tipped missiles in submarines at sea — to deter others from launching their weapons against America.
Restarting testing raises additional questions
If the U.S. restarted nuclear weapons testing, it isn’t immediately clear what the goal would be. Nonproliferation experts have warned any scientific objective likely would be eclipsed by the backlash to a test — and possibly be a starting gun for other major nuclear powers to begin their own widespread testing.
“Restarting the U.S. nuclear testing program could be one of the most consequential policy actions the Trump administration undertakes — a U.S. test could set off an uncontrolled chain of events, with other countries possibly responding with their own nuclear tests, destabilizing global security, and accelerating a new arms race,” experts warned in a February article in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.
“The goal of conducting a fast-tracked nuclear test can only be political, not scientific. … It would give Russia, China and other nuclear powers free rein to restart their own nuclear testing programs, essentially without political and economic fallout.”
Any future U.S. test likely would take place in Nevada at the testing sites, but a lot of work likely would need to go into the sites to prepare them given it’s been over 30 years since the last test. A series of slides made for a presentation at Los Alamos National Laboratories in 2018 laid out the challenges, noting that in the 1960s the city of Mercury, Nevada — at the testing grounds — had been the second-largest city in Nevada.
On average, 20,000 people had been on site to organize and prepare for the tests. That capacity has waned in the decades since.
“One effects shot would require from two to four years to plan and execute,” the presentation reads. “These were massive undertakings.”
This old RAF bunker once helped keep Britain’s radar network running during World War II – and is now a unique holiday home with incredible views of the Dorset coast
Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas News Reporter
03:00, 29 Sep 2025
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
During the darkest days of the Battle of Britain, it would’ve seemed just a little unlikely that the concrete bunkers built to defend against the Luftwaffe would one day see cheery holidaymakers arrive with luggage in tow.
But few getaways offer quite the same experience as the Standby Generator Bunker in Ringstead, Dorset, a converted former World War II radar facility that’s now a unique holiday destination.
Built in 1941, this hidden gem once housed a large generator that was crucial to keeping the Chain Home radar network running if the power grid failed, forming one of six subterranean spaces on the former RAF Ringstead site.
Its job was to provide back-up power for a transmitter bunker located a short distance up the road, which sent out radio waves into the Channel that would bounce back to a receiver if an enemy aircraft was detected. This information was then relayed to RAF Fighter Command, who was given the all-important task of intercepting German bomber planes before they could reach Britain’s major towns and cities.
After victory over the Axis was assured in 1945, RAF Ringstead carried on as a Rotor station during the first years of the Cold War, to guard against the new Soviet threat. The generator bunker was eventually decommissioned in 1956, and stayed empty for almost seventy years, disappearing further into overgrowth as the decades passed by.
Now marvellously restored and repurposed as a luxury holiday let, this Grade II listed structure sprang back to life as a holiday cottage in late 2024, with its owners keen to retain original wartime features while furnishing it with all the luxuries desired by a 21st-century holidaymaker.
I arrived on a pleasant September afternoon to find the bunker in tiptop condition. What’s obvious straight away is just how well this once-functional space has been adapted to its new role as somewhere to truly unwind and ‘get away from it all’, with comfortable furniture and an island kitchen spread across the spacious open-plan front room, all facing towards the enormous window.
Three bedrooms are located over two floors, including one double room, with the property sleeping eight people in total.
On the walls are some wonderful bits of wartime ephemera, including a selection of British and American civilian posters directed at the civilian population, as well as photographs showing the Chain Home network and RAF aircraft in action.
And then there’s the sublime coastal view – framed in a blast-shaped opening from the concrete surround – of the English Channel, which stretches out effortlessly into the horizon as you peer through a row of trees at the bottom of the garden.
A spot of lunch or perhaps a glass of wine can be enjoyed out on the balcony, giving you the same perspective that was once keenly surveyed by the military, albeit with the task of national survival on their minds, rather than rest and relaxation.
On the first day of our stay, my other half and I ventured down to Ringstead Bay to make the most of a spot of bright autumn weather. We acquainted ourselves with the giant seaweed on the pebble beach as we walked to the charming town of Osmington Mills.
By the following day, a Met Office weather warning had been ushered in across the south of England, and we elected to do what any sane person would in such a situation – head to the pub.
We tucked into a hearty roast at the Smuggler’s Inn, a 13th-century pub around 20 minutes walk away. Our visit coincided with the Iron Man triathlon in nearby Weymouth, and ripples of applause bounced around the cosy interior as competitors reunited with their families for a well-earned pint following a mammoth 69-mile trek.
For the final day, Durdle Door was top of our to-see list, as it should be for anyone who finds themselves in this part of the country. This famous colossal limestone arch has been shaped over millions of years by the relentless force of the sea, and attracts visitors from all over the world with its postcard-perfect beauty.
A choppy sea on our visit meant a particularly spectacular display of the waves crashing up against the sides of the arch, delighting the gaggle of tourists who lined the beach, taking selfies.
We then took a short walk over to Lulworth Cove, a natural horseshoe bay surrounded by dramatic jagged cliffs and rolling hills. One particularly recent addition to this beauty spot has been the Weld Estate’s Saltwater Sauna, which since April has given visitors the opportunity to get themselves nice and steamy in a booth overlooking the beach, before dashing into the cool waters a few yards below.
A great natural high, I’m told, though admittedly I was more interested in the comfort offered by the sausage rolls sold by the harbour.
And that was my time in Dorset, spent enjoying just a small slice of what this handsome area has to offer, and lounging in accommodation quite unlike any other I’ve ever been to.
When the autumn weather does catch up with you, there is certainly something to be said for coming back to a bunker like this one, with its living roof, expansive views and intriguing backstory. There being such fine scenery quite literally on your doorstep, you really don’t have to be a history buff to get into what the Standby Generator Bunker has to offer – though I would say in my case, it certainly didn’t hurt.
Book it
The Standby Generator Bunker is available for bookings through Sykes Cottages, starting from £1001 for seven nights.
If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores.
Critic Bethanne Patrick recommends 10 promising titles, fiction and nonfiction, to consider for your July reading list.
It’s officially beach-reads season: Whether you do your reading outdoors or inside in air-conditioned comfort, July’s hot new releases will help you stay cool. Topics range from analog memories of Golden Age Hollywood to a maverick female athlete. Happy reading!
Baum, a journalist for the Hollywood Reporter, draws on knowledge he has gleaned about cosmetic surgery, the profession of his protagonist, Dr. Roya Delshad. Dr. Delshad, who is multiracial and once supposedly plain, remakes herself into a glorious bombshell — but then lands in prison. She’s agreed to consider interviews with a ghostwriter named Wes Easton, who will soon discover why she’s called “the Robin Hood of Roxbury Drive.”
Like the carriage of a well-oiled Olivetti, this novel moves between Carmel and Hollywood, in two different centuries, with ease. In 1957, actress Isabella Giori hopes to land a career-making role in a Hitchcock film; when her circumstances change and she winds up secluded in a tiny cottage in Carmel-on-the-Sea, a blacklisted emigre screenwriter named Léon Chazan saves her. In 2018, his screenwriter granddaughter finally learns how and why.
Vera, the child narrator of this wry and relevant new novel from Shteyngart (“Our Country Friends”), brings a half-Korean heritage to the Russian-Jewish-WASP Bradford-Shmulkin family. Between Daddy, Anne Mom, and her longing for her unknown bio Mom Mom, Vera has a lot to handle, while all she really wants is to help her dad and stepmom stay married — and to make a friend at school. It’s a must-read.
In the wake of her best friend Esther’s 2020 death, Miriam loses faith in almost everything, including the God that made her job teaching Christian scripture at a San Francisco private school bearable. She quits and takes a job as a mail carrier (as the author also did), not only finding moments of grace from neighborhood to neighborhood but also writing letters to Esther in an effort to understand the childhood difficulties that bonded them.
The title tells so much about how queer people must live in Nigeria, and so does the structure: Osunde (“Vagabonds!”) calls it a novel, although its chapters read more like short stories. If it doesn’t hang together like a traditional novel, that may be part of the point. Characters like May, struggling with gender identity, or Ziz, a gay man in Lagos, know that their identities don’t always hang together in traditional ways — and that’s definitely the point.
Decades of Cold War espionage between the United States and the Soviet Union included programs that leveraged cultural media. The Central Intelligence Agency’s Manhattan-based “book club” office was run by an emigre from Romania named George Midden, who managed to send 10 million books behind the Iron Curtain. Some of them were serious tomes, yes, but there were Agatha Christie novels, Orwell’s “1984” and art books too.
Crucially, MacGregor’s painstakingly researched history of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan at the end of World War II includes Japanese perspectives. The historian (“Checkpoint Charlie”) treats the atomic bomb more as a weapon of mass murder and less as a scientific breakthrough, while managing to convey the urgency behind its development for the Allied forces.
Let this sink in (basketball pun very much intended): Caitlin Clark has scored more points than any player in major college basketball history. Not just the female players — the male players too. Now that she’s in the WNBA as a rookie for the Indiana Fever, Clark is attracting the kind of fan base once reserved for male basketball stars like Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Brennan’s longtime coverage of Clark’s career makes this book a slam dunk.
Each stratum, or layer, of our planet tells a story. Science writer Poppick explains what those millions of strata can tell us about four instances that changed life dramatically, from oxygen entering the atmosphere all the way to the dinosaur era. Ultimately, she argues that these strata show us that when stressed, the earth reacts by changing and moving toward stability. It’s a fascinating peek into the globe’s core that might offer clues about sustainability.
The once-unassuming Roxie Laybourne became the world’s first forensic ornithologist in 1960, when the FAA asked the Smithsonian — where Laybourne was an avian taxidermist — to help them identify shredded feathers from a fatal airplane crash in Boston. She analyzed specimens that contributed to arrests in racial attacks, as well as in catching game poachers and preventing deaths of fighter pilots. In her way, Laybourne was a badass.
Trump’s comments on nuclear testing upend decades of U.S. policy. Here’s what to know about it
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — President Trump’s comments Thursday suggesting the United States will restart its testing of nuclear weapons upends decades of American policy in regards to the bomb, but come as Washington’s rivals have been expanding and testing their nuclear-capable arsenals.
Nuclear weapons policy, once thought to be a relic of the Cold War, increasingly has come to the fore as Russia has made repeated atomic threats to both the U.S. and Europe during its war on Ukraine. Moscow also acknowledged this week testing a nuclear-powered-and-capable cruise missile called the Burevestnik, code-named Skyfall by NATO, and a nuclear-armed underwater drone.
China is building more ground-based nuclear missile silos. Meanwhile, North Korea just unveiled a new intercontinental ballistic missile it plans to test, part of a nuclear-capable arsenal likely able to reach the continental U.S.
The threat is starting to bleed into popular culture as well, most recently with director Kathryn Bigelow ‘s new film “A House of Dynamite.”
But what does Trump’s announcement mean and how would it affect what’s happening now with nuclear tensions? Here’s what to know.
Trump’s comments came in a post on his Truth Social website just before meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping. In it, Trump noted other countries testing weapons and wrote: “I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately.”
The president’s post raised immediate questions. America’s nuclear arsenal is maintained by the Energy Department and the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semiautonomous agency within it — not the Defense Department. The Energy Department has overseen testing of nuclear weapons since its creation in 1977. Two other agencies before it — not the Defense Department — conducted tests.
Trump also claimed the U.S. “has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country.” Russia is believed to have 5,580 nuclear warheads, according to the Washington-based Arms Control Association, while the U.S. has 5,225. Those figures include so-called “retired” warheads waiting to be dismantled.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute further breaks the warhead total down, with the U.S. having 1,770 deployed warheads with 1,930 in reserve. Russia has 1,718 deployed warheads and 2,591 in reserve.
The two countries account for nearly 90% of the world’s atomic warheads.
U.S. last carried out a nuclear test in 1992
From the time America conducted its “Trinity” nuclear bomb detonation in 1945 to 1992, the U.S. detonated 1,030 atomic bombs in tests — the most of any country. Those figures do not include the two nuclear weapons America used against Japan in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II.
The first American tests were atmospheric, but they were then moved underground to limit nuclear fallout. Scientists have come to refer to such tests as “shots.” The last such “shot,” called Divider as part of Operation Julin, took place Sept. 23, 1992, at the Nevada National Security Sites, a sprawling compound some 65 miles from Las Vegas.
America halted its tests for a couple of reasons. The first was the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. The U.S. also signed the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty in 1996. There have been tests since the treaty, however — by India, North Korea and Pakistan, the world’s newest nuclear powers. The United Kingdom and France also have nuclear weapons, while Israel long has been suspected of possessing atomic bombs.
But broadly speaking, the U.S. also had decades of data from tests, allowing it to use computer modeling and other techniques to determine whether a weapon would successfully detonate. Every president since Barack Obama has backed plans to modernize America’s nuclear arsenal, whose maintenance and upgrading will cost nearly $1 trillion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The U.S. relies on the so-called “nuclear triad” — ground-based silos, aircraft-carried bombs and nuclear-tipped missiles in submarines at sea — to deter others from launching their weapons against America.
Restarting testing raises additional questions
If the U.S. restarted nuclear weapons testing, it isn’t immediately clear what the goal would be. Nonproliferation experts have warned any scientific objective likely would be eclipsed by the backlash to a test — and possibly be a starting gun for other major nuclear powers to begin their own widespread testing.
“Restarting the U.S. nuclear testing program could be one of the most consequential policy actions the Trump administration undertakes — a U.S. test could set off an uncontrolled chain of events, with other countries possibly responding with their own nuclear tests, destabilizing global security, and accelerating a new arms race,” experts warned in a February article in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.
“The goal of conducting a fast-tracked nuclear test can only be political, not scientific. … It would give Russia, China and other nuclear powers free rein to restart their own nuclear testing programs, essentially without political and economic fallout.”
Any future U.S. test likely would take place in Nevada at the testing sites, but a lot of work likely would need to go into the sites to prepare them given it’s been over 30 years since the last test. A series of slides made for a presentation at Los Alamos National Laboratories in 2018 laid out the challenges, noting that in the 1960s the city of Mercury, Nevada — at the testing grounds — had been the second-largest city in Nevada.
On average, 20,000 people had been on site to organize and prepare for the tests. That capacity has waned in the decades since.
“One effects shot would require from two to four years to plan and execute,” the presentation reads. “These were massive undertakings.”
Gambrell writes for the Associated Press.
Source link
‘I stayed in a hidden WWII bunker that was far more luxurious than it sounds’
This old RAF bunker once helped keep Britain’s radar network running during World War II – and is now a unique holiday home with incredible views of the Dorset coast
Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas News Reporter
03:00, 29 Sep 2025
During the darkest days of the Battle of Britain, it would’ve seemed just a little unlikely that the concrete bunkers built to defend against the Luftwaffe would one day see cheery holidaymakers arrive with luggage in tow.
But few getaways offer quite the same experience as the Standby Generator Bunker in Ringstead, Dorset, a converted former World War II radar facility that’s now a unique holiday destination.
Built in 1941, this hidden gem once housed a large generator that was crucial to keeping the Chain Home radar network running if the power grid failed, forming one of six subterranean spaces on the former RAF Ringstead site.
Its job was to provide back-up power for a transmitter bunker located a short distance up the road, which sent out radio waves into the Channel that would bounce back to a receiver if an enemy aircraft was detected. This information was then relayed to RAF Fighter Command, who was given the all-important task of intercepting German bomber planes before they could reach Britain’s major towns and cities.
After victory over the Axis was assured in 1945, RAF Ringstead carried on as a Rotor station during the first years of the Cold War, to guard against the new Soviet threat. The generator bunker was eventually decommissioned in 1956, and stayed empty for almost seventy years, disappearing further into overgrowth as the decades passed by.
Now marvellously restored and repurposed as a luxury holiday let, this Grade II listed structure sprang back to life as a holiday cottage in late 2024, with its owners keen to retain original wartime features while furnishing it with all the luxuries desired by a 21st-century holidaymaker.
I arrived on a pleasant September afternoon to find the bunker in tiptop condition. What’s obvious straight away is just how well this once-functional space has been adapted to its new role as somewhere to truly unwind and ‘get away from it all’, with comfortable furniture and an island kitchen spread across the spacious open-plan front room, all facing towards the enormous window.
Three bedrooms are located over two floors, including one double room, with the property sleeping eight people in total.
On the walls are some wonderful bits of wartime ephemera, including a selection of British and American civilian posters directed at the civilian population, as well as photographs showing the Chain Home network and RAF aircraft in action.
And then there’s the sublime coastal view – framed in a blast-shaped opening from the concrete surround – of the English Channel, which stretches out effortlessly into the horizon as you peer through a row of trees at the bottom of the garden.
A spot of lunch or perhaps a glass of wine can be enjoyed out on the balcony, giving you the same perspective that was once keenly surveyed by the military, albeit with the task of national survival on their minds, rather than rest and relaxation.
On the first day of our stay, my other half and I ventured down to Ringstead Bay to make the most of a spot of bright autumn weather. We acquainted ourselves with the giant seaweed on the pebble beach as we walked to the charming town of Osmington Mills.
By the following day, a Met Office weather warning had been ushered in across the south of England, and we elected to do what any sane person would in such a situation – head to the pub.
We tucked into a hearty roast at the Smuggler’s Inn, a 13th-century pub around 20 minutes walk away. Our visit coincided with the Iron Man triathlon in nearby Weymouth, and ripples of applause bounced around the cosy interior as competitors reunited with their families for a well-earned pint following a mammoth 69-mile trek.
For the final day, Durdle Door was top of our to-see list, as it should be for anyone who finds themselves in this part of the country. This famous colossal limestone arch has been shaped over millions of years by the relentless force of the sea, and attracts visitors from all over the world with its postcard-perfect beauty.
A choppy sea on our visit meant a particularly spectacular display of the waves crashing up against the sides of the arch, delighting the gaggle of tourists who lined the beach, taking selfies.
We then took a short walk over to Lulworth Cove, a natural horseshoe bay surrounded by dramatic jagged cliffs and rolling hills. One particularly recent addition to this beauty spot has been the Weld Estate’s Saltwater Sauna, which since April has given visitors the opportunity to get themselves nice and steamy in a booth overlooking the beach, before dashing into the cool waters a few yards below.
A great natural high, I’m told, though admittedly I was more interested in the comfort offered by the sausage rolls sold by the harbour.
And that was my time in Dorset, spent enjoying just a small slice of what this handsome area has to offer, and lounging in accommodation quite unlike any other I’ve ever been to.
When the autumn weather does catch up with you, there is certainly something to be said for coming back to a bunker like this one, with its living roof, expansive views and intriguing backstory. There being such fine scenery quite literally on your doorstep, you really don’t have to be a history buff to get into what the Standby Generator Bunker has to offer – though I would say in my case, it certainly didn’t hurt.
Book it
The Standby Generator Bunker is available for bookings through Sykes Cottages, starting from £1001 for seven nights.
Source link
Books to read in July 2025
Reading List
10 books for your July reading list
If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores.
Critic Bethanne Patrick recommends 10 promising titles, fiction and nonfiction, to consider for your July reading list.
It’s officially beach-reads season: Whether you do your reading outdoors or inside in air-conditioned comfort, July’s hot new releases will help you stay cool. Topics range from analog memories of Golden Age Hollywood to a maverick female athlete. Happy reading!
FICTION
In Pursuit of Beauty: A Novel
By Gary Baum
Blackstone: 256 pages, $29
(July 1)
Baum, a journalist for the Hollywood Reporter, draws on knowledge he has gleaned about cosmetic surgery, the profession of his protagonist, Dr. Roya Delshad. Dr. Delshad, who is multiracial and once supposedly plain, remakes herself into a glorious bombshell — but then lands in prison. She’s agreed to consider interviews with a ghostwriter named Wes Easton, who will soon discover why she’s called “the Robin Hood of Roxbury Drive.”
Typewriter Beach: A Novel
By Meg Waite Clayton
Harper: 320 pages, $30
(July 1)
Like the carriage of a well-oiled Olivetti, this novel moves between Carmel and Hollywood, in two different centuries, with ease. In 1957, actress Isabella Giori hopes to land a career-making role in a Hitchcock film; when her circumstances change and she winds up secluded in a tiny cottage in Carmel-on-the-Sea, a blacklisted emigre screenwriter named Léon Chazan saves her. In 2018, his screenwriter granddaughter finally learns how and why.
Vera, or Faith: A Novel
By Gary Shteyngart
Random House: 256 pages, $28
(July 8)
Vera, the child narrator of this wry and relevant new novel from Shteyngart (“Our Country Friends”), brings a half-Korean heritage to the Russian-Jewish-WASP Bradford-Shmulkin family. Between Daddy, Anne Mom, and her longing for her unknown bio Mom Mom, Vera has a lot to handle, while all she really wants is to help her dad and stepmom stay married — and to make a friend at school. It’s a must-read.
Mendell Station: A Novel
By J. B. Hwang
Bloomsbury: 208 pages, $27
(July 22)
In the wake of her best friend Esther’s 2020 death, Miriam loses faith in almost everything, including the God that made her job teaching Christian scripture at a San Francisco private school bearable. She quits and takes a job as a mail carrier (as the author also did), not only finding moments of grace from neighborhood to neighborhood but also writing letters to Esther in an effort to understand the childhood difficulties that bonded them.
Necessary Fiction: A Novel
By Eloghosa Osunde
Riverhead: 320 pages, $28
(July 22)
The title tells so much about how queer people must live in Nigeria, and so does the structure: Osunde (“Vagabonds!”) calls it a novel, although its chapters read more like short stories. If it doesn’t hang together like a traditional novel, that may be part of the point. Characters like May, struggling with gender identity, or Ziz, a gay man in Lagos, know that their identities don’t always hang together in traditional ways — and that’s definitely the point.
NONFICTION
The CIA Book Club: The Secret Mission to Win the Cold War With Forbidden Literature
By Charlie English
Random House: 384 pages, $35
(July 1)
Decades of Cold War espionage between the United States and the Soviet Union included programs that leveraged cultural media. The Central Intelligence Agency’s Manhattan-based “book club” office was run by an emigre from Romania named George Midden, who managed to send 10 million books behind the Iron Curtain. Some of them were serious tomes, yes, but there were Agatha Christie novels, Orwell’s “1984” and art books too.
The Hiroshima Men: The Quest to Build the Atomic Bomb, and the Fateful Decision to Use It
By Iain MacGregor
Scribner: 384 pages, $32
(July 8)
Crucially, MacGregor’s painstakingly researched history of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan at the end of World War II includes Japanese perspectives. The historian (“Checkpoint Charlie”) treats the atomic bomb more as a weapon of mass murder and less as a scientific breakthrough, while managing to convey the urgency behind its development for the Allied forces.
On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports
By Christine Brennan
Scribner: 272 pages, $30
(July 8)
Let this sink in (basketball pun very much intended): Caitlin Clark has scored more points than any player in major college basketball history. Not just the female players — the male players too. Now that she’s in the WNBA as a rookie for the Indiana Fever, Clark is attracting the kind of fan base once reserved for male basketball stars like Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Brennan’s longtime coverage of Clark’s career makes this book a slam dunk.
Strata: Stories From Deep Time
By Laura Poppick
W. W. Norton & Co.: 288 pages, $30
(July 15)
Each stratum, or layer, of our planet tells a story. Science writer Poppick explains what those millions of strata can tell us about four instances that changed life dramatically, from oxygen entering the atmosphere all the way to the dinosaur era. Ultimately, she argues that these strata show us that when stressed, the earth reacts by changing and moving toward stability. It’s a fascinating peek into the globe’s core that might offer clues about sustainability.
The Feather Detective: Mystery, Mayhem, and the Magnificent Life of Roxie Laybourne
By Chris Sweeney
Avid Reader Press: 320 pages, $30
(July 22)
The once-unassuming Roxie Laybourne became the world’s first forensic ornithologist in 1960, when the FAA asked the Smithsonian — where Laybourne was an avian taxidermist — to help them identify shredded feathers from a fatal airplane crash in Boston. She analyzed specimens that contributed to arrests in racial attacks, as well as in catching game poachers and preventing deaths of fighter pilots. In her way, Laybourne was a badass.
Source link