Atomic Family

"Powerful debut...McElroy writes with veracity about the effects of nuclear waste on the land and water, and brings to life the strange mix of terror and naivete of the era."—STARRED Review, Publishers Weekly

"Atomic Family is a sharp portrait of a family unraveling under the pressure of the paranoia of the Cold War arms race"—Foreword Reviews

“Atomic Family is a wholly original, gripping, and stunningly crafted story of one family’s attempt to cope with the fears and uncertainty of the nuclear age. Ciera Horton McElroy captures the fragility of a young boy and his parents as they struggle with their own personal demons in the face of potential catastrophe. Atomic Family is as lyrical and assured as it is devastating.”—Diane Chamberlain, New York Times bestselling author of The Last House on the Street

“An intensely moving and emotional book…a 24 hours where, for one family, everything implodes.”—Historical Novel Society

“Atomic Family reminds us that it’s the everyday moments that matter, as the novel shifts from the national and global to the deeply personal.”—EcoLit Books

“Ciera Horton McElroy is a magician of prose and psychology. Atomic Family is a Mrs. Dalloway updated for the nuclear age, an intense excavation of memory, trauma, and hope. Her characters, so deeply felt, will whisper to you at night long after you finish the book.”—Brenda Peynado, The Rock Eaters

“Atomic Family is a gorgeous, suspenseful story of the Cold War and of complicated characters living in the wake of the second Red Scare. Historically precise, but never a history lesson, the novel explores a series of moments as resonant and relevant to America today as they have ever been. A glorious debut announcing the arrival of an astonishing talent on the literary scene.”—David James Poissant, Lake Life and The Heaven for Animals