Great lives in science are all about passion and curiosity. Marie Curie, the Polish discoverer of radium, had both in grand measure. But down the road she helped open nuclear energy, which meant atomic bombs, which put Curie centre stage during one of the great turning points in human history. Barbara Goldsmith has captured the woman and her science in a brief biography which joins a distinguished list - the Great Discoveries that have consistently matched unexpected writers with notable adventures of the mind.