J. Robert Oppenheimer and literature, in two ways

Knowing which books influenced or heavily affected historical figures is quite entertaining.

In the case of J. Robert Oppenheimer, a man who helped develop nuclear weapons, it becomes even more fascinating.

As it turns out, he was a devoted reader of the Bhagavad Gita, an ancient Hindu scripture.

Alok A. Khorana, a writer and physician born in India, explores how Oppenheimer came to read, understand, and apply the Gita to his work with the Manhattan Project in an essay posted at Literary Hub.

Meanwhile, the New York Times looked back at the great creative effort behind American Prometheus, a prize-winning biography of Oppenheimer, co-written by Martin Sherwin and Kai Bird.

Both posts are, of course, inspired by the upcoming release of the biopic Oppenheimer.

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