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Radium Girls: The Deadly Glow that Changed History
Paperback
Biographies General20th Century United States HistoryWomen's Studies
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Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Nov 23 2025
Pages: 98
Weight: 0.31
Height: 0.20 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
The radium was a silent killer, but before that, it was a miracle, a symbol of progress, and a source of blinding hope.
In the early 20th century, a group of young women found themselves in the most coveted job in America: painting watch dials with a new, magical substance that glowed in the dark. They were paid well, they were independent, and they literally shone. But the lip-pointing technique they were taught-dipping their brushes into the radium paint and sharpening them with their mouths-was a death sentence.
Radium Girls: The Deadly Glow that Changed History tells the harrowing and heroic story of the women who were poisoned by their work and the corporate giants who tried to silence them. It is a saga of radium jaw, crumbling bones, and a fight for justice that would forever change the landscape of workers' rights.
Inside this gripping historical account, you will discover:
- The Allure of the Glow: How radium was marketed as a miracle cure and beauty product, blinding the world to its dangers.
- A Slow Burn: The terrifying onset of symptoms that doctors couldn't explain and companies refused to acknowledge.
- The Legal Battle: The courageous fight led by Grace Fryer and her fellow ghost girls against a powerful corporate goliath.
- The Legacy of Safety: How their sacrifice led to the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and modern labor laws.
This book is a tribute to the women whose silent suffering spoke volumes. Their glow was deadly, but their legacy is eternal.
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