In
1926, radium was a miracle cure, Madame Curie an international
celebrity, and luminous watches the latest rage—until the girls
who painted them began to fall ill with a mysterious disease. Inspired
by a true story, Radium Girls traces the efforts of Grace Fryer, a dial
painter, as she fights for her day in court. Her chief adversary is her
former employer, Arthur Roeder, an idealistic man who cannot bring
himself to believe that the same element that shrinks tumors could have
anything to do with the terrifying rash of illnesses among his
employees. As the case goes on, however, Grace finds herself battling
not just with the U.S. Radium Corporation, but with her own family and
friends, who fear that her campaign for justice will backfire. |