Changing Light
by Nora Gallagher
ISBN-10: 0375424512
ISBN 13: 9780375424519
Pantheon
$22.00 Hardcover
February 2007

What's It About?

In the summer of 1945 in rural New Mexico, Eleanor stumbles upon a man lying ill, and begins to nurse him without knowing who he is: Leo Kavan, a scientist who has gone AWOL from the Los Alamos project--and who is in a state of crisis about the atomic bomb.
Who's Talking About It?
“At last, a novel about something. Nora Gallagher captures with dazzling beauty the lives of a woman and a man caught in the grip of history and our country's shadowed past. I held my breath reading it.”--Annie Dillard, author of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

“Changing Light is a remarkable love story, told against the backdrop of Los Alamos, New Mexico, and the final innocent days of the world before the atom bomb. Nora Gallagher has effortlessly moved into the world of fiction, bringing her understanding of the spiritual life to her characters, and revealing the importance of faith, not just in religion, but between people, and among the inner workings of science and art.”--Hannah Tinti, author of Animal Crackers

“An incredibly beautiful story with echoes of [Michael] Ondaatje and [Ian] McEwan. Haunting and unforgettable, this is a smashing fiction debut from one of our most thoughtful writers.”--Martha Sherrill, author of The Ruins of California
Why Did She Write It?
“One day I was walking on a piece of land I owned near the Rio Grande not far from Santa Fe. As I looked across the river, I suddenly realized that across the river, and on the other side of a mesa was the city of Los Alamos. And at once I wondered what would have happened had one of the physicists working on the 'gadget,' as they called it, decided to jump ship. So, the idea for the novel came to me all at once.”
Where Will I See It?
National media attention, including radio and print features; national review attention; nine-city author tour; tie-in to the author's lecture schedule; and national advertising, including The New York Times Book Review.