ON NUCLEAR TERRORISM

Most people have heard of nuclear terrorism in the context of dirty bombs, but few know of the complexities of stealing and transporting enough fissionable material to make an explosive weapon. Although his narrative is sometimes dense with physics and statistics, writer Michael Levi deals more often with information everyone can understand. How about a Russian uranium warehouse without a single guard and its alarms silenced by a lack of electricity? Narrator Mike Chamberlain has a forceful voice, a knack for scientific language, and a pace that keeps the story urgent and understandable. The author defines his prodigal abbreviations once, but listeners with imperfect memories may struggle to remember what they all mean. Will you remember that WGU means weapons-grade uranium? J.A.H. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2011]