Hiroshima Nagasaki

Name: Hiroshima Nagasaki
Rating: 4.176470756530762 (17 reviews)

Paul Ham

Aug 2012 · Random House

17 reviews

Ebook

720

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Eligible

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About this ebook

Japan 1945. In one of the defining moments of the twentieth century, more than 100,000 people were killed instantly by two atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by US Air Force B29s. Hundreds of thousands more succumbed to their horrific injuries, or slowly perished of radiation-related sickness.

Hiroshima Nagasaki tells the story of the tragedy through the eyes of the survivors, from the twelve-year-olds forced to work in war factories to the wives and children who faced it alone. Through their harrowing personal testimonies, we are reminded that these were ordinary people, given no warning and no chance to escape the horror.

American leaders claimed that the bombings were 'our least abhorrent choice' and fell strictly on 'military targets'. Even today, most people believe they ended the Pacific War and saved millions of American and Japanese lives. Hiroshima Nagasaki challenges this deep-set perception, revealing that the atomic bombings were the final crippling blow to the Japanese in a stratgic air war waged primarily against civilians.

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Ratings and reviews

17 reviews

Siouxi SanRaphael

August 28, 2025

I made me more aware of the evils of war, I cried because of the lack of humanity of all peoples involved especially as I didn't know 💔 that the UK plus the US were targeting civilian populations in this way 💔 my heart bleeds as I was born and bred in Wales, UK. We were not taught at school about the atrocities. I guess I thought only about the bombs that ended the war was the Atom bomb that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. May there NEVER be another 🙏 WW3 There will nothing but dust left of our beautiful planet EARTH 🌏.

William Large

September 22, 2016

Anyone who thinks Hiroshima and Nagasaki weren't war crimes should read this book. Smart and factual.

2 people found this review helpful

Michael S.

May 8, 2017

A must read for those who are interested in the nuclear deployment in Japan.

About the author

Paul Ham is the author of twelve books, including The Soul: A History of the Human Mind, Hiroshima Nagasaki, Passchendaele: The Bloody Battle that Nearly Lost the Allies the War, 1914: The Year the World Ended, Sandakan: The Untold Story of the Sandakan Death Marches, Vietnam: The Australian War and Kokoda.
Hiroshima Nagasaki is being made into a six-part radio drama by Goldhawk and Thoroughbred Studios, due out in 2026.
All Paul's books have won or been shortlisted for major literary prizes in Australia. Vietnam and Kokoda were made into ABC documentaries, which he co-wrote and presented.
A former Sunday Times correspondent, with a Master’s degree from the London School of
Economics, Paul now lives in Paris and devotes his time to writing history and (when possible) teaching a course in Narrative History at Sciences Po, France’s preeminent tertiary school for the humanities.

Paul Ham is the author of twelve books, including The Soul: A History of the Human Mind, Hiroshima Nagasaki, Passchendaele: The Bloody Battle that Nearly Lost the Allies the War, 1914: The Year the World Ended, Sandakan: The Untold Story of the Sandakan Death Marches, Vietnam: The Australian War ...

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