Full Body Burden: Growing Up In The Nuclear Shadow Of Rocky Flats (2012) - Plot & Excerpts
An engaging and troubling memoir about growing up down the road anddownwind of the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons facility. Not that arearesidents realized what it was back in the 50s when they were buying homes in which to raise their families. Employees at the plant were not allowed to discuss their work with anyone.Secrecy is a major theme here. Big government secrecy about the facility and the effect it might have on surrounding lands, people and animals. Then there's family secrecy, the kind that will be familiar to anyone who grew up with an alcoholic parent, as Iverson did.The author's life, as she recounts in this book, paralells the trajectory of the nation. It begins hopefully in the 1950s, with her parents starting their family, her father's career taking off, the shiny new house in the wonderful new subdivision, and the Rocky Flats facility pumping lifeblood into the local economy. Then come the questioning 60s and 70s, the cancers, the protests, the internal strife within families where one person in the household might work at Rocky Flats while another is picketing it. In the 80s, Kristen leaves for a while and lives elsewhere, starting her own family, only to move back as a single mom and work her own stint at Rocky Flats. This is when she begins compiling notes on the place. While all of this is happening, Iverson's father is drinking more and sinking farther, eventually losing his law practice and leaving the family.The effects of plutonium exposure in the surrounding community were devastating, with some families losing several members of the household to cancer. And many of the residents who have never been diagnosed with cancer have suffered other strange health problems - lots of thyroid issues, lots of illnesses that are never diagnosed but seem to afflict many people with the same symptoms. The most chilling facet of the story, to me, is how the families who had the "healthiest" most "environmentally friendly" lifestyles suffered the most. Those whose grew their own food (in contaminated soil) and the kids who got plenty of outdoors exercise were most likely to fall. I'd like to think we as a society could learn something from this. I'm just not sure. We seem to repeat the same mistakes again and again. Full Body Burden is a story of growing up in a Colorado town close to Rocky Flats, a secret nuclear weapons plant. It's also a book about the destructive power of secrets — family secrets and government secrets. Her father's hidden liquor bottles, the strange cancers in children in the neighborhood, the truth about what they made at Rocky Flats—best not to inquire about it. But as Iversen grew older, she began to ask questions and discovered some disturbing realities. It is an account of the government's sustained attempt to conceal the effects of the toxic and radioactive waste released by Rocky Flats, and of local residents' attempts to seek justice in court. A shocking and engrossing story, which details how the government is so artful at coverup.
What do You think about Full Body Burden: Growing Up In The Nuclear Shadow Of Rocky Flats (2012)?
Very scary govt practices during the Cold War, and present day.
—agreen1234
Not a bad read but came off as someone with an agenda.
—Trineice
Good book of the history of the Rocky Flats.
—gretko51
