Prompt and Utter Destruction, Third Edition
Truman and the Use of Atomic Bombs against Japan
J. Samuel Walker
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Published: 06/2016
Pages: 160
Subject: History, Political Science
| University of North Carolina
Print ISBN: 9780000000000
eBook ISBN: 9781469628981
DESCRIPTION
In this concise account of why America used atomic bombs against
Japan in 1945, J. Samuel Walker analyzes the reasons behind
President Truman's most controversial decision. Delineating what
was known and not known by American leaders at the time, Walker
evaluates the options available for ending the war with Japan. In
this new edition, Walker incorporates a decade of new
research--mostly from Japanese archives only recently made
available--that provides fresh insight on the strategic
considerations that led to dropping the bomb. From the debate about
whether to invade or continue the conventional bombing of Japan to
Tokyo's agonizing deliberations over surrender and the effects of
both low- and high-level radiation exposure, Walker continues to
shed light on one of the most earthshaking moments in history.
Rising above an often polemical debate, the third edition presents
an accessible synthesis of previous work and new research to help
make sense of the events that ushered in the atomic age.