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Edward Teller Dreams of Barbecuing People
"My father studied thermonuclear reactions. He could explain Nagasaki at the subatomic level."
Welcome to Livermore, California, the early 1980s. Gene Harland introduces you to a world of Cold War politics, swimming pools, crushy love, and genuine loss in Jim Nelson’s new novel EDWARD TELLER DREAMS OF BARBECUING PEOPLE. Growing up in sleepy suburbia surrounded by nuclear scientists, teenage Gene witnesses firsthand the culture of arms development and the collision of pure research with Cold War defense. It’s 1983 and Ronald Reagan has declared the Soviet Union the Evil Empire. The President calls on the scientists of Livermore to develop a defense system protecting the United States from nuclear missile attack. Gene’s father has spent the last fifteen years inventing and improving weapons of mass destruction, and now he leads the team behind the Strategic Defense Initiative creating “a shield not a sword.”
Skeptical seventeen year-old Gene sets out to wage his own kind of Cold War. He stages a mock protest on the high school quad to rattle the administration’s cage—and then is invited to Sacramento to receive the California Assembly’s civic recognition. He falls in love with the school misfit, a girl with a wild past and a wicked sense of flirtation. Then Gene visits Las Vegas with his father for an underground nuclear test and discovers the terrible secret of his father’s space shield.
By the conclusion, Gene learns what he stands to lose by alienating himself from the world…and what he stands to lose by engaging with it.
Welcome to Livermore, California, the early 1980s. Gene Harland introduces you to a world of Cold War politics, swimming pools, crushy love, and genuine loss in Jim Nelson’s new novel EDWARD TELLER DREAMS OF BARBECUING PEOPLE. Growing up in sleepy suburbia surrounded by nuclear scientists, teenage Gene witnesses firsthand the culture of arms development and the collision of pure research with Cold War defense. It’s 1983 and Ronald Reagan has declared the Soviet Union the Evil Empire. The President calls on the scientists of Livermore to develop a defense system protecting the United States from nuclear missile attack. Gene’s father has spent the last fifteen years inventing and improving weapons of mass destruction, and now he leads the team behind the Strategic Defense Initiative creating “a shield not a sword.”
Skeptical seventeen year-old Gene sets out to wage his own kind of Cold War. He stages a mock protest on the high school quad to rattle the administration’s cage—and then is invited to Sacramento to receive the California Assembly’s civic recognition. He falls in love with the school misfit, a girl with a wild past and a wicked sense of flirtation. Then Gene visits Las Vegas with his father for an underground nuclear test and discovers the terrible secret of his father’s space shield.
By the conclusion, Gene learns what he stands to lose by alienating himself from the world…and what he stands to lose by engaging with it.
181 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 16, 2014
About the author
Jim Nelson
11 books68 followersJim Nelson’s novels include Bridge Daughter, A Man Named Baskerville, and more. His latest is Chandler & West: A Story of Los Angeles.
He divides his time between San Francisco and Tokyo.
He divides his time between San Francisco and Tokyo.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 10, 2014
Laundry List of likes:
I liked the contrast in the novel between the the dream and the reality.
Similarly, I liked how the expectations characters had of politicians, relationships, their futures wound up being kind of disappointing.
I liked how when Gene is avoiding everyone at the barbecue, you felt like you were there.
I liked how events that might encompass entire novels or plot lines could be simple facets of the story.
I loved the chapter "Our Contribution" and how much it resonates with and has been extrapolated and exaggerated by the youth of today.
I like how the book questions the effectiveness of protest over time.
I liked the premise of "kid living in science-nuketown" and having a decent relationship to his parents.
I liked how it didn't devolve into a story about dysfunctional families.
I also liked how I could identify with Gene while at the same time recognizing his shortcomings are somewhat the result of him being at a pivotal moment in his young life.
I absolutely loved the last chapter "Dreams". That was exceptional.
I liked the contrast in the novel between the the dream and the reality.
Similarly, I liked how the expectations characters had of politicians, relationships, their futures wound up being kind of disappointing.
I liked how when Gene is avoiding everyone at the barbecue, you felt like you were there.
I liked how events that might encompass entire novels or plot lines could be simple facets of the story.
I loved the chapter "Our Contribution" and how much it resonates with and has been extrapolated and exaggerated by the youth of today.
I like how the book questions the effectiveness of protest over time.
I liked the premise of "kid living in science-nuketown" and having a decent relationship to his parents.
I liked how it didn't devolve into a story about dysfunctional families.
I also liked how I could identify with Gene while at the same time recognizing his shortcomings are somewhat the result of him being at a pivotal moment in his young life.
I absolutely loved the last chapter "Dreams". That was exceptional.
July 13, 2015
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I found it to be well- written and researched. It is an interesting story of a young man growing up in a reality he can't reconcile with his past. In attempting to be different, he makes the same blunders and inconsistencies of those in the generations before him that he ridicules. The sarcasm and humor make the book a fine, worthwhile read. The characters are realistic and the setting is believable. I was drawn to the book by the title, as I had a professor in college with a background in nuclear weapons research. I was not disappointed. The book kept my interest and was a quick and entertaining read.
July 25, 2015
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. I have to admit that while I liked this book it wasn't what I thought it was going to be. It was better! This is a coming of age story with the "Star Wars" program as a backdrop. Gene, the teenage narrator, is growing up an only child of counter culture parents. His father works at "The Lab", his mom works in a bookstore. He falls for Gwen, one of the "Mods" in school. There are parts that made me laugh out loud and some that brought back a few painful high school memories. It's definitely a personal opinion, but I wanted it to end differently. I did enjoy this book and would happily recommend it as a short quick read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews