{"id":1800,"date":"2012-12-11T16:47:26","date_gmt":"2012-12-11T16:47:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.frickngenius.com\/workinprogress\/?page_id=2"},"modified":"2025-11-17T23:52:22","modified_gmt":"2025-11-17T23:52:22","slug":"home","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.danfagin.com\/website\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ inner_shadow=”on” _builder_version=”4.3.2″ background_image=”https:\/\/frickngenius.com\/danfagin\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/tomsriverheaderimage.jpg” background_position=”top_right” custom_padding=”||0px|||” background_last_edited=”on|phone” parallax_tablet=”off” background_position_tablet=”top_right” background_position_phone=”top_right” custom_css_main_element=”img {max-width:100%;}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/frickngenius.com\/danfagin\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/whitename.png” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_padding=”84px|||||”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_testimonial quote_icon=”off” _builder_version=”4.3.2″ background_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” inline_fonts=”Cagliostro,Almendra,Dosis,Acme,Abhaya Libre,Big Shoulders Text,ABeeZee”]

“Surely<\/span> a new classic of science reporting”<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The<\/em><\/strong><\/span>\u00a0New York Times\u00a0\u00a0<\/i>on\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>Toms River<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_testimonial][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″ min_height=”710px” custom_margin=”||0px|||” custom_padding=”0px||0px|||”][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_4,1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_margin=”|auto|1px|auto||”][et_pb_column type=”3_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.3.2″ header_font_size=”85px” header_2_font=”||||||||” header_2_font_size=”35px”]

New York Times Bestseller<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

TOMS RIVER<\/h1>\n

A STORY OF SCIENCE AND SALVATION<\/h2>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.2.2″ text_font_size=”16px” custom_margin=”||14px|||”]

The story of a small town engulfed\u00a0by industrial pollution, Toms River<\/em> melds hard-hitting investigative reporting, a fascinating scientific detective story, deep historical research and unforgettable characters into a sweeping narrative in the tradition of A Civil Action, The Emperor of All Maladies<\/em>, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.3.2″]

“A new classic of science reporting” — Read the\u00a0<\/span>Times<\/i>‘ rave review of Toms River<\/span><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][dsm_text_badges main_text=”Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction” badges_text=”Winner” badges_placement=”before” badges_background_color=”#7cda24″ badges_gap=”11px” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ header_font_size=”24px” badges_text_color=”#ffffff” custom_margin=”||2px|||” link_option_url=”http:\/\/www.pulitzer.org\/citation\/2014-General-Nonfiction”][\/dsm_text_badges][dsm_text_badges main_text=”Helen Bernstein BOOK AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM” badges_text=”Winner” badges_placement=”before” badges_background_color=”#7cda24″ badges_gap=”11px” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ header_font_size=”24px” badges_text_color=”#ffffff” link_option_url=”http:\/\/www.nypl.org\/press\/press-release\/may-29-2014\/journalist-dan-fagin-wins-2014-helen-bernstein-book-award-excellence”][\/dsm_text_badges][dsm_text_badges main_text=”NATIONAL ACADEMIES SCIENCE BOOK AWARD” badges_text=”Winner” badges_placement=”before” badges_background_color=”#7cda24″ badges_gap=”11px” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ header_font_size=”24px” badges_text_color=”#ffffff” link_option_url=”http:\/\/www8.nationalacademies.org\/onpinews\/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=09092014″][\/dsm_text_badges][dsm_text_badges main_text=”SEJ Rachel Carson ENVIRONMENT BOOK AWARD” badges_text=”Winner” badges_placement=”before” badges_background_color=”#7cda24″ badges_gap=”11px” _builder_version=”4.3.2″ header_font_size=”24px” badges_text_color=”#ffffff” link_option_url=”http:\/\/www.sej.org\/initiatives\/winners-sej-13th-annual-awards-reporting-environment#Book”][\/dsm_text_badges][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.2.2″]

A quiet seaside town in New Jersey, Toms River became the unlikely setting for a decades-long drama that culminated in 2001 with one of the largest legal settlements in the annals of toxic dumping. A town that would rather have been known for its Little League World Series champions ended up making history for an entirely different reason: a notorious cluster of childhood cancers scientifically linked to local air and water pollution. For years, large chemical companies had been using Toms River as their private dumping ground, burying tens of thousands of leaky drums in open pits and discharging billions of gallons of acid-laced wastewater into the town\u2019s namesake river.<\/span><\/p>\n

More about TOMS RIVER<\/a><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/frickngenius.com\/danfagin\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/tomsriverbook3d1.png” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.3.2″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/055380653X\/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=055380653X&linkCode=as2&tag=alexandrew-20″ button_text=”Amazon” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ custom_padding=”|||1px||” animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/toms-river-dan-fagin\/1112406391?ean=9780553806533″ button_text=”Barnes & Noble” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/www.indiebound.org\/book\/9780553806533″ button_text=”Indiebound” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/www.powells.com\/biblio?isbn=978-0553806533″ button_text=”Powells” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/www.booksamillion.com\/p\/Toms-River\/Dan-Fagin\/9780553806533?id=5324527737843″ button_text=”Books A Million” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][et_pb_button button_url=”http:\/\/click.linksynergy.com\/fs-bin\/stat?id=OxTsE2*dpXM&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=https%253A%252F%252Fitunes.apple.com%252Fus%252Fbook%252Ftoms-river%252Fid572414537%253Fmt%253D11%2526uo%253D4%2526partnerId%253D30″ button_text=”iBooks” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”12px” button_bg_color=”#0c71c3″ animation_style=”fade” custom_css_main_element=”width:100%;”][\/et_pb_button][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.3.2″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”#fff3d1″ background_color_gradient_end=”#ffdca8″ background_color_gradient_direction=”257deg” background_image=”https:\/\/www.danfagin.com\/website\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Parallax-this.jpg” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” height_tablet=”393px” height_phone=”388px” height_last_edited=”on|desktop” custom_padding=”20px||391px|||”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.3.2″ width=”100%” max_width=”2560px” custom_margin=”-48px||||false|false”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.3.2″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.3.2″ text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_font_size=”18px” background_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.61)” text_orientation=”right” width=”100%” module_alignment=”right” custom_padding=”5px|21px|5px||true|false” text_font_size_tablet=”14px” text_font_size_phone=”12px” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet”]

Dan’s current book project is about monarch butterflies and the future of life<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.2.2″ min_height=”136px” custom_padding=”||0px|||”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.2.2″ header_font_size=”78px” custom_padding=”||0px|||”]

NEWS AND ARTICLES<\/h1>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_4,1_4,1_4,1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_margin=”-25px|auto||auto||” custom_padding=”||1px|||”][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_blog posts_number=”1″ excerpt_length=”100″ show_more=”on” show_author=”off” show_pagination=”off” _builder_version=”4.3.2″][\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_blog posts_number=”1″ excerpt_length=”100″ show_more=”on” show_author=”off” show_pagination=”off” offset_number=”1″ _builder_version=”4.3.2″][\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_blog posts_number=”1″ excerpt_length=”100″ show_more=”on” show_author=”off” show_pagination=”off” offset_number=”2″ _builder_version=”4.3.2″][\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_blog posts_number=”1″ excerpt_length=”100″ show_more=”on” show_author=”off” show_pagination=”off” offset_number=”3″ _builder_version=”4.3.2″][\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.2.2″ min_height=”73px” custom_margin=”|auto|-42px|auto||” custom_padding=”5px||0px|||”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.3.2″ header_font_size=”78px” custom_padding=”||0px|||” link_option_url=”\/articles”]

MORE NEWS AND ARTICLES..<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.3.2″ background_image=”https:\/\/www.danfagin.com\/website\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/Bookstore21.jpg” custom_padding=”38px||357px|||”][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″ custom_margin=”0px|||||”][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_5,2_5″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.2.2″]

About Dan<\/h2>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.2.2″]

\"\"A\u00a0Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who writes frequently about environmental science, Dan Fagin is also a science journalism professor at New York University. His bestselling book,\u00a0<\/span>Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation<\/a><\/em>,was awarded the 2014 Pulitzer for General Nonfiction, as well as the New York Public Library\u2019s Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism, the National Academies Science Book Award and the Society of Environmental Journalists\u2019 Rachel Carson Environment Book Award, among other honors. A rave review in the\u00a0<\/span>New York Times <\/em>described\u00a0<\/span>Toms River<\/em>\u00a0as \u201cgreat journalism\u201d and \u201ca new classic of science reporting.\u201d Dan\u2019s recent publications include\u00a0<\/span>The New York Times<\/em>,\u00a0<\/span>Scientific American, Nature<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Slate.\u00a0<\/em>His new book project is about monarch butterflies and the future of biodiversity in the Anthropocene. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read the full bio…<\/a><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.2.2″][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1778,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"

__________________________________________________________________________<\/h3>\nWinner of the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\nWinner of the Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\nWinner of the National Academies Science Book Award<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\nWinner of the SEJ Rachel Carson Environment Book Award<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\nNow a New York Times<\/em> bestseller<\/span><\/strong>\n\nRead the Times' <\/em>rave review of Toms River.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em>And check out the paperback edition, featuring a new afterword by Dan.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\n \n

<\/h3>\n

The story of a small town engulfed\u00a0by industrial pollution, Toms River<\/em> melds hard-hitting investigative reporting, a fascinating scientific detective story, deep historical research and unforgettable characters into a sweeping narrative in the tradition of A Civil Action, The Emperor of All Maladies<\/em>, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks<\/em>.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

<\/h3>\n \n

Watch and hear Dan's talks and media appearances,<\/a>\u00a0and see where he'll be next.<\/a><\/h3>\n