The Green Glass Sea

Bibliography


Klages, Ellen. 2006. The Green Glass Sea. New York, NY: Puffin Books.ISBN 978014241149
Summary

The Green Glass Sea, written by Ellen Klages is a wonderful story set during World War II. Dewey, the main character has had a hard life. Her mother left Dewy and her father when she was a toddler. She has had to live with her grandmother while her father is away doing "war work". When we first meet her, Dewey is waiting for her father to come and take her to live with him. Her grandmother has fallen ill and needs to be placed in a nursing home. Imagine her surprise when an Army representative comes to pick her up and informs her that she is to travel all the way across the country to meet her father in a secret location. This turns out to be Los Alamos, New Mexico. Her father is a scientist who is working on a "gadet" that is supposed to win the war. When Dewey's father is called away, Dewey must move in with another family-one with a girl her own age who torments Dewey. Eventually, the friendship blossoms and they become friends.

Critical Analysis

The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages is a wonderful book about a topic that is rarely written about in children's literature. The two main characters, eleven year old Dewey and ten year old Suze are thrown together because their parents are scientist working to create a "gadget" that will win the war. Dewey loves to invent and build things like radios, robots and other "gizmos". Klages often gives clues about Dewey that are hard to decipher at first. For example, she mentions briefly that Dewey has one brown shoe that buttons down on the side and one regular shoe. Readers eventually find out the sad tale that has made Dewey physically different from other children. Suze is completely different from Dewey. She thinks that she is popular and part of the "in" crowd only to be humilated and hurt. This pain, along with the highly unusual circumstances, lead to a friendship that turns into a much stronger bond.

The book is an accurate representation of a time in history that no one will ever forget. Klages offers a bibliography of sources that readers can consult to find out more about the history of nuclear physics. The music, the pastimes and ideas of the American people of this time are accurately described and add to the authenticity of the story. In addition, the descriptions of Los Alamos help readers to realize that this is a real place where the hydrogen bomb was first tested.

Themes such as losing a parent, learning to be tolerant of others who are different, and the impact of war on humans are palpable throught the novel. Although the story takes place in 1943, these themes are still relevant for children around the world.

Klages also includes famous scientists as characters in the book. Figures such as Robert Oppenheimer, and Enrico Fermi are mentioned as other scientist working with the girl's parents on the secret invention.

The Green Glass Sea offers a look into the lives of the families who lived on "the hill" and worked on a project that is controversial to this day. Readers will come away with a better understanding of what happened during this time. If readers want to find out what happens next, Klages has written a sequel: White Sands, Red Menance. I highly recommend this book for readers of all ages. Although I am well past the age of "young adult", I did not know too much about where the atomic bomb was invented and tested. This book has peaked my interest and given me much to think about.

Review Excerpts

Publishers Weekly, 10/23/2006Klages makes an impressive debut with an ambitious, meticulously researched novel set during WWII. Writing from the points of view of two displaced children, she successfully recreates life at Los Alamos Camp, where scientists and mathematicians converge with their families to construct and test the first nuclear bomb. Eleven-year-old Dewey, the daughter of a math professor, is shunned by the other girls at the camp due to her passionate interest in mechanics and her fascination with the dump, which holds all sorts of mechanisms and tools she can use for her projects. Her classmate Suze is also often snubbed and has been nicknamed "Truck" by her classmates (" 'cause she's kind of big and likes to push people around," explains one boy). The two outcasts reluctantly come together when Dewey's father is called away to Washington, D.C., and Dewey temporarily moves in with Suze's family. Although the girls do not get along at first (Suze draws a chalk line in her room to separate their personal spaces), they gradually learn to rely on each other for comfort, support and companionship. Details about the era—popular music, pastimes and products—add authenticity to the story as do brief appearances of some historic figures including Robert Oppenheimer, who breaks the news to Dewey that her father has been killed in a car accident. If the book is a little slow-moving at times, the author provides much insight into the controversies surrounding the making of the bomb and brings to life the tensions of war experienced by adults and children alike. Ages 9-up.

School Library Journal, 11/01/2006Gr 5-8 –Two girls spend a year in Los Alamos as their parents work on the secret “gadget” that will end World War II. Dewey is a mechanically minded 10-year-old who gets along fine with the scientists at the site, but is teased by girls her own age. When her mathematician father is called away, she moves in with Suze, who initially detests her new roommate. The two draw closer, though, and their growing friendship is neatly set against the tenseness of the Los Alamos compound as the project nears completion. Clear prose brings readers right into the unusual atmosphere of the secretive scientific community, seen through the eyes of the kids and their families. Dewey is an especially engaging character, plunging on with her mechanical projects and ignoring any questions about gender roles. Occasional shifts into first person highlight the protagonist’s most emotional moments, including her journey to the site and her reaction to her father’s unexpected death. After the atomic bomb test succeeds, ethical concerns of both youngsters and adults intensify as the characters learn how it is ultimately used. Many readers will know as little about the true nature of the project as the girls do, so the gradual revelation of facts is especially effective, while those who already know about Los Alamos’s historical significance will experience the story in a different, but equally powerful, way.

Connections
Awards: The Scott O'dell Historical Fiction Award, 2007
Author's Website: http://ellenklages.com/index.html

The Green Glass Sea was orginially written as short story. This short story eventually became the last chapter in the novel. The story, along with unique illustrations can be found here:

http://www.strangehorizons.com/2004/20040906/greenglass-f.shtml

Here is a link to a wordsearch puzzle created for the novel.
http://www.nlc.state.ne.us/libdev/OBOK/2009/WordSearchPuzzle.pdf

More information and actual pictures from the time can be found at this website:

http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Tests/Trinity.html