Countdown 1945: The Extraordinary Story of the Atomic Bomb and the 116 Days That Changed the World

NEW YORK TIMESBESTSELLER * โ€œPropulsive.โ€ โ€”Time* โ€œReads like a tense thriller.โ€ โ€”TheWashington Post* โ€œThe most exciting book Iโ€™ve read all year.โ€ โ€”Admiral William H. McRaven

From Chris Wallace, the veteran journalist and anchor of Fox News Sunday, comes an electrifying behind-the-scenes account of the 116 days leading up to the American attack on Hiroshima.

April 12, 1945: After years of bloody conflict in Europe and the Pacific, America is stunned by news of President Franklin D. Rooseveltโ€™s death. In an instant, Vice President Harry Truman, who has been kept out of war planning and knows nothing of the top-secret Manhattan Project to develop the worldโ€™s first atomic bomb, must assume command of a nation at war on multiple continentsโ€”and confront one of the most consequential decisions in history. Countdown 1945 tells the gripping true story of the turbulent days, weeks, and months to follow, leading up to August 6, 1945, when Truman gives the order to drop the bomb on Hiroshima.

In Countdown 1945, Chris Wallace, the veteran journalist and anchor of Fox News Sunday, takes readers inside the minds of the iconic and elusive figures who join the quest for the bomb, each for different reasons: the legendary Albert Einstein, who eventually calls his vocal support for the atomic bomb โ€œthe one great mistake in my lifeโ€; lead researcher J. Robert โ€œOppieโ€ Oppenheimer and the Soviet spies who secretly infiltrate his team; the fiercely competitive pilots of the plane selected to drop the bomb; and many more.

Perhaps most of all, Countdown 1945 is the story of an untested new president confronting a decision that he knows will change the world forever. Trumanโ€™s journey during these 116 days is a story of high drama: from the shock of learning of the bombโ€™s existence, to the conflicting advice he receives from generals like Dwight D. Eisenhower and George Marshall, to wrestling with the devastating carnage that will result if he gives the order to use Americaโ€™s first weapon of mass destruction.

But Countdown 1945 is more than a book about the atomic bomb. Itโ€™s also an unforgettable account of the lives of ordinary American and Japanese civilians in wartimeโ€”from โ€œCalutron Girlsโ€ like Ruth Sisson in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, to ten-year-old Hiroshima resident Hideko Tamura, who survives the blast at ground zero but loses her mother and later immigrates to the United States, where she lives to this dayโ€”as well as American soldiers fighting in the Pacific, waiting in fear for the order to launch a possible invasion of Japan.

Told with vigor, intelligence, and humanity,ย Countdown 1945ย is the definitive account of one of the most significant moments in history.

Buy It Now!

Editorial Reviews

Review

#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER
#1 WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER
#1 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BESTSELLER

โ€œA compelling and highly readable account of one of the most fateful decisions in American history. Like John Hersey in his book Hiroshima, Wallace and Weiss humanize events too often reduced to technical or diplomatic arcana by telling their story through the lives of individuals. . . . The book moves along at a rapid clip, with colorful anecdotes enlivening the narrative.โ€
โ€”Gregg Herken, The Washington Post

โ€œBrisk, naturally propulsive . . . But Countdown 1945 also reflects the rigor and fealty to facts that have distinguished Wallace.โ€
โ€”Time

โ€œEveryone knows the outcome, yet Wallace manages to make this carefully researched account of the months before Hiroshima read like a tense thriller.โ€
โ€”Bethanne Patrick, The Washington Post

โ€œFox News Sunday host Wallace debuts with a propulsive account of the final months of WWII leading up to atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . . . Wallace, with help from journalist Weiss, writes with verve and an eye for cinematic detail . . . This accessible, evenhanded account serves as an entertaining introduction to one of the most momentous decisions in world history.โ€
โ€”Publishers Weekly

โ€œEntertaining . . . Wallace describes a moment in history when both intense deliberation and decisive leadership were essential. . . . A brisk work of history that weaves together the various factions responsible for the deployment of the first nuclear bombs.โ€
โ€”Kirkus Reviews

Buy It Now!

โ€œThere is no finer journalist in America today than Chris Wallace and no more dramatic story in American history than Trumanโ€™s decision to drop the atomic bomb. Countdown 1945 moves at a breakneck pace and even though you know the ending, you canโ€™t put it down. This is the most exciting book Iโ€™ve read all year.โ€
โ€”Admiral William H. McRaven (U.S. Navy Retired), #1 New York Times bestselling author of Make Your Bed and Sea Stories

โ€œAs a reporter and a news anchor, Chris has been at the center of the biggest news stories of the last four decades. Heโ€™s given perspective and insight when weโ€™ve needed it most. Now, his same attention to detail fills the pages of Countdown 1945, the story of arguably the most consequential event in the U.S. since the Civil War. Itโ€™s a stunning piece of work.โ€
โ€”George Clooney

โ€œCountdown 1945 goes beyond our history lessons. It tells moving, personal stories of Americans who played pivotal roles in one of our most important moments as a nation. From scientists at the top of their field, to heroic members of our military, to everyday Americans, itโ€™s an incredible story of how our country came together with a determined spirit to end a war and save countless lives.โ€
โ€”Ambassador Nikki Haley, New York Times bestselling author of With All Due Respect: Defending America with Grit and Grace 

โ€œCountdown 1945 is a real-life thriller about one of the most important events of the twentieth century. Veteran journalist Chris Wallace takes readers behind the scenes and brings to life the compelling story of the 116 days leading up to Hiroshima. Written like a spy novel, this is a must-read history that will educate and keep you turning the pages. Not to be missed!โ€
โ€”Daniel Silva, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The New Girl

โ€œVivid, fast-paced, and wide-ranging, Countdown 1945 is a fine telling of one of the twentieth centuryโ€™s most remarkable talesโ€”how the United States designed, built, delivered, and detonated the first two atomic bombs over Japan.โ€
โ€”Rick Atkinson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of An Army at Dawn and The British Are Coming

Buy It Now!

About the Author

Chris Wallace is the anchor of Fox News Sunday. In his sixteen years at Fox, Wallace has covered almost every key political event. Throughout his five decades in broadcasting, he has interviewed numerous U.S. and world leaders, including seven American presidents, and won every major broadcast news award for his reporting, including three Emmy Awards, the duPont-Columbia Silver Baton, and the Peabody Award.

Mitch Weiss is a Pulitzer Prizeโ€“winning investigative journalist for the Associated Press, covering subjects ranging from military misconduct, government corruption, and white-collar crimes to the housing meltdown and unsafe medical devices. He is also the critically acclaimed author or coauthor of seven books.

Buy It Now!
The Thinking Conservative
The Thinking Conservativehttps://www.thethinkingconservative.com/
The goal of THE THINKING CONSERVATIVE is to help us educate ourselves on conservative topics of importance to our freedom and our pursuit of happiness. We do this by sharing conservative opinions on all kinds of subjects, from all types of people, and all kinds of media, in a way that will challenge our perceptions and help us to make educated choices.

Columns

Viewers like you

There is no constitutional authority for any spending on public broadcasting โ€“ period. Any questions: See Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution.

Trans-wormal

No worm ever said "I am anthropomorphizing, I am a butterfly" to a toad or flock of geese and expected acknowledgement and support.

In Greenlandโ€™s Icy Capital, Past Troubles Haunt Hopes for the Future

As geopolitical realities and ongoing economic growth raise the stakes, U.S. interest in Greenland and the dream of independence may change things in a big way.

How a Chinese Government Statistician Was Forced to Report Fake Data

Chinese local govt employee produced a non-authorized report on bees and was visited by police and threatened with being sent to a mental hospital.

โ€˜This One Time, at Groomer Campโ€™

All Camp Brave Trails programs focus on helping LGBTQ+ youth find what they need most to thrive: their people, their place, and their passion.

News

Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow Dismantling of Education Department

Trump admin asked Supreme Court to allow it to resume dismantling U.S. Dept of Education, following a lower courtโ€™s previous order halting process.

FTC Warns of Rising Student Loan Scams, Says Fraudsters Took Millions From Borrowers

FTC is warning borrowers to steer clear of student loan debt-relief scams, after shutting down group of companies that allegedly charged millions in illegal fees and left customers worse off.

Walmartโ€™s Drone Delivery Coming to 5 More US Cities

Walmart is set to launch its drone delivery service in five more U.S. cities: Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Orlando, and Tampa, the company.

Court Orders Trump Administration to Restore AmeriCorps Funding to States

Federal court ordered Trump admin to restore AmeriCorps funding to states. The ruling comes as part of a lawsuit filed by 24 states and DC.

Tax Deductions You Can Take Without Itemizing

Itโ€™s not always beneficial to itemize. With IRSโ€™s current standard deduction for 2025 most Americans who canโ€™t itemize go with standard deduction.

US Economy Adds 139,000 New Jobs in May, Topping Market Forecasts

U.S. economy added 139,000 new jobs last month, surpassing economistsโ€™ expectations and indicating U.S. labor market remains in a robust position.

Guatemalan Deportee Arrives in US After Judge Orders Trump Admin to Facilitate Return

โ€œAmericaโ€™s asylum system was never intended to be used as a de facto amnesty program or a catch-all, get-out-of-deportation-free card,โ€ McLaughlin said.

Trump-Musk Feud Escalates Over Spending Bill: 5 Things to Know

A public feud between Musk and Trump took a turn for the worse. Musk claimed president wouldnโ€™t have won without him and president suggested Muskโ€™s subsidies could be pulled.
spot_img

Related Articles