The Atomic Weight of Love

An Amazon Best Book of May 2016: The Atomic Weight of Love sounded like a quiet book to me, but the process of transformation from caterpillar to butterfly is a quiet thing, too, and that’s what this story reminds me of. It’s a fascinating account of Meridian Wallace, a science-minded woman who falls in love with a brilliant man working on big things—in this case, the atomic bomb. She puts her dreams on hold in service to his, sure that it’s only temporary and in these years meets other women who have done the same. Suddenly, it seems as if she has just faded into the background of her own life. Then the catalyst--a young man, both hippie and Vietnam veteran, who introduces her to many things, freedoms born of the era, and there is indecision. Ultimately Meridian reclaims herself, takes her identities over all those years and patches them together into a new and meaningful life. Woven throughout are interesting facts about human-like bird behavior and historical anecdotes, so while Meridian’s story--a reflection of the changing role of women between the 1940’s and 1970’s--is the centerpiece, there are many other treasures along the way. --Seira Wilson

Spanning the years from World War II through the Vietnam era and set in the breathtaking landscape of the American Southwest, this triumphant debut tells the story of indomitable, gifted Meridian Wallace--a late-blooming heroine awakened by the women’s movement who discovers what she has to offer amid a world lain to waste by the ravages of men.

“Church’s debut will likely strike a chord, especially with women who find that not much has changed in our patriarchal society since Meri’s time, and that Meri’s story might well be their own.” —Booklist

“This exquisite debut is the story of a woman who must negotiate the tricky terrain of love, responsibility, ambition, and sacrifice. In her impeccable portrayal of a long marriage, Church weaves together the historical and the personal and shows the impossible choices women faced--and still face--between family and self.” —Tara Conklin, New York Times bestselling author of The House Girl