Hiroshima

Chapter 1 is about the bombing of the city. The second chapter goes into the general history of Japan and the specific history of the Hiroshima area and city. It also reveals something I have not read elsewhere.

Perry's journey to Japan was not just to force Japan to open its trading doors, but also to release some American sailors that had shipwrecked there and that the Japanese had refused to allow to leave.

The chapter also talks about the Japanese military advances that led up to World War II. Chapter 2 is about the start of WWII through the battle of Midway.

Chapter 3 is about the early work on the development of the atomic bomb. Chapter 4 is about the change of fortune for Japan in the latter part of the war, and the severe conditions that were developing (as far as food, etc. goes) in the cities, including Hiroshima.

Chapter 5 goes into some of the arguments for and against the use of the atomic bomb. Chapter 6 is about the actual dropping of the bomb. Some of the description is very, very graphic and could be upsetting to younger readers.

Chapter 7 talks about the aftermath of the bombing. One of the strangest things to try to understand is how many Japanese people made fun of and disliked survivors of the bombing who were disfigured with scars from the effects of the blast. (These people are called hibakusha). The last chapter is on Hiroshima today, and the anti-bomb movement.

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