The Doctor of Hiroshima by Dr Michihiko Hachiya

 The Doctor of Hiroshima

 by Dr Michihiko Hachiya

Synopsis

The powerful and inspiring diary of a doctor who survived the atomic bomb and treated the people of Hiroshima only 1500m from the centre of the blast.

With what this poor woman had been through the sight of her crying tore at my heartstrings. What if something should happen to her; who would care for her little baby? To conceal the fear and terror in my heart I left her, trying to put up a cheerful front. But no one could conceal from her the ominous import of the dark spots that had appeared on her chest.

The Doctor of Hiroshima is the extraordinary true story of Dr Michihiko Hachiya, whose hospital was less than a mile from the centre of the atomic bomb that hit on that warm August day. Somehow, in immense shock and pain and extremely weak, the doctor and his wife manage to drag themselves to the hospital, where their horrific wounds are treated, and they slowly begin to recover. Tentatively, the doctor starts to reckon with the utter devastation of the bomb, and to investigate the strange symptoms afflicting his patients.

Told simply and poignantly through Dr Hachiya's daily diary entries, The Doctor of Hiroshima is the inspiring story of how a doctor and his patients fought to survive and rebuild their lives in the face of unimaginable loss.

My Review

I have to be honest I found this an incredibly difficult book to read and review. Reading what it was like in, and around, Hiroshima after the atom bomb was dropped makes for difficult reading and there is no way to mask this. 

The narrative is simply told as it happened and also from the perspective of the inhabitants who survived, many with horrific physical injuries as well as mental scarring. The reaction to the Emperor's surrender makes for thoughtful reading along with the arrival of the Western Allies into Hiroshima.

This was a difficult book to review from the perspective of the Western allies and the knowledge of what our Prisoners of War endured at the hands of the Japanese 

If nothing else, this true -life story should convey the principle that war , and its aftermath, should be avoided at all costs . Regardless of what individuals feel as to the reasons for war , no amount of suffering, on either side is worth the hollow victory .

About the Author

Dr. Michihiko Hachiya was Director of the Hiroshima Communications Hospital when the world's first atomic bomb was dropped on the city.

After the bomb, he continued as Director there for several years before taking on a teaching role at Okayama University Medical School.

He retired in Okayama and passed away in the 1980s.