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'Tis strange - but true; for truth is always strange; Stranger than fiction; if it could be told, How much would novels gain by the exchange!' (Lord Byron's Don Juan (1823))

Luminous is story so powerful that it really leaves its mark. Compelling and compassionately told, this is a true David vs Goliath tale in that it tells the true story of a fight for justice against a most belligerent and heartless company who ignored and undervalued its female workforce at every possible step.

Told from Catherine Donahue's viewpoint, the story begins in the Prohibition era and follows her life from very humble beginnings in Ottawa, Illinois to the Supreme Court as she becomes the face of the Radium girls.
At the outset, hers is an ordinary life, until she gets a job at Radium Dial and discovers a new world of independence and new friendships that will last a lifetime, though for some, lives are much shorter than one might expect.
The job involves dipping brushes into the radium mixture then using their mouths to create a pointed head in order to create a very fine line with which to paint the clock dials. Catherine and her co-workers think nothing of doing this, having been instructed so by their managers, who they trust implicitly - after all, if it was unsafe, then such a procedure wouldn't be allowed. Would it?
Time passes and Catherine is happy in her work, as are her friends who are now having fun with the "sparkling" after-effects of the fine dust that circulates in the factory and coats their clothes and hair. Life is good.

However, other after-effects begin to manifest themselves and the girls experience loose teeth and mouth sores, which are quickly dismissed as caused by external factors unrelated to the radium. When the company suggests the girl try a different approach to create that fine line with which to paint the dials, eyebrows are raised, especially when there seems to be no reason forthcoming for this change. and when this approach slows the girls down and they ask if they can revert to the old process, the company does not object.

By now, serious health issues are becoming more common, and there are stories of young women who had worked in the radium factories dying. When Catherine herself begins to feel ill, she asks for reassurance, especially since news of a case against a similar company in New Jersey goes to court. Radium Dial brings in doctors to check the girls out and are quick to allay their fears, insisting that radium is not the cause of any of their health concerns. Relief all round!

Except, that wasn't true, and it becomes highly apparent that the radium company is holding back information. But they're not alone in this as many others in power prefer to ignore the facts because the company has brought employment to the area. As is often the case, money is power, and the health - or rather the lives - of these young women is disregarded in favour of profit.

Catherine's health deteriorates rapidly, and she seeks medical advice elsewhere, advice which clarifies to her that radium poisoning is a very real thing. Yet who will listen? It seems as though these women have been side-lined to oblivion. Not an outcome Catherine can tolerate; she is determined to raise awareness nationally of the suffering she and her friends are now forced to endure. Even finding a lawyer prepared to help is nigh on impossible, and it takes time and someone special to present their case in the many law courts through which they must pass to get justice.

Luminous is beautifully written, so much so that you cannot help but be swept along with Catherine as she transforms from a sweet, naive teenager to a strong independent young woman, becoming a wife and mother, all while battling her own health issues and seeing her friends suffer and die. Their stories are told with compassion and sensitivity. Yet, running along these tender life stories is the story of ruthless companies who fail their workforce while trying to appear to be looking after them. Neglect is one thing, but covering up the truth, distorting the facts, and denying the consequences of their demands upon their staff is something altogether more evil (though, unfortunately, not a lesson that some appeared to have learned since then!)You cannot help but admire and be impressed by the strength of those women, but also to feel and sense of dismay and contempt for those who put them in danger and then went on to turn a blind eye to the consequences.

A story that will break your heart and infuriate you in equal measures, but which will leave you with an overwhelming sense of admiration for the Radium girls, and those who fought back for those who died and for a future where health and safety concerns would be taken more seriously.