Kunito Okamura

May the Seven Rivers of Hiroshima Reach the Galaxy Kunito Okamura

Publisher Marketing: Merriam Press Modern History 2. First Edition (June 2012). This is Kunito Okamura's story of how his parents survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. He was born after the war, and witnessed the re-birth of Hiroshima. "It is the sad nature of man that even the hardest memories can so easily be brushed away by time. As mentioned in the preface of the original Japanese version, it was based on the story told by my parents about their tough experiences of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima. Though the story was about the cruel tragedy, it was not intended to blame anyone. I thought that such a sad history of war should be passed on to the coming generations so as not to repeat such a stupid thing ever again. Also what drove me to this work was the people's dedication to Hiroshima's recovery by helping each other. Their vivid faces in contrast to their shabby clothing were branded into the boy's brain despite their sad fate of losing houses and families to that extremely sad event. Their faces looked rather shining because of the hope and dream for their and Japan's bright future." Contents: Prologue: The City of Hiroshima; Fireball bombing; A Tale of August 6; Cursed day; Desperate Flight; Ninoshima Camp; Search for Yoshito; Return from Ninoshima; Homecoming; End of war; Resurrection; Retrospect; My boyhood memories; Epilogue: Live the future; 49 photos.