by Iain MacGregor, priced at £25
When the first atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on the morning of August 6, 1945, it changed the world forever.
The attack – together with a second strike on Nagasaki three days later – achieved the Allied aim of an unconditional Japanese surrender and swift end to the Second World War. But the raids, which are reckoned to have killed upwards of 200,000 people, also ushered in a new global order and, ultimately, a threat to civilisation itself.
The beginnings of this new reality are charted by Iain MacGregor in The Hiroshima Men, which paints a picture of a world as seen through the eyes of key players at the dawn of the nuclear age.
Throughout, the historian draws on a mountain of research while using testimony from the surviving witnesses of the period – including those who lived through the attacks – weaving all together in a compelling narrative. In combination, these different perspectives provide a rounded picture of the situation that led to the terrible events of August 6. A fear of Axis powers gaining the nuclear edge and developing their own weapons of mass destruction had prompted the allies to pursue a path of research during the war.
MacGregor’s achievement is commendable in terms of research, readability and timeliness, coming at a time when there have been recent conflicts involving nuclear-armed nations.
Review: Cliff Caswell, Soldier
