The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb (Hardcover)

~ Dennis D. Wainstock (Author)
Key Phrases: successful atomic bomb test, paragraph twelve, unconditional surrender terms, United States, Soviet Union, Potsdam Declaration (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Readers will be indebted to Wainstock for his use of US Strategic Bombing Survey interrogations of Japanese leaders as well as material from the Kido Family Documents at the National Diet Library in Tokyo....Wainstock makes an honest effort to examine all sides of the subject.”–Parameters

Product Description

This book is a balanced account of the political, diplomatic, and military currents that influenced Japan's attempts to surrender and the United States's decision to drop the atomic bombs. Based on extensive research in both the United States and Japan, this book allows the reader to follow the parallel decision-making in Tokyo and Washington that contributed to lost opportunities that might have allowed a less brutal conclusion to the war. Topics discussed and analyzed include Japan's desperate military situation; its decision to look to the Soviet Union to mediate the conflict; the Manhattan Project; the debates within Truman's Administration and the armed forces as to whether to modify unconditional surrender terms to include retention of Emperor Hirohito and whether to plan for the invasion of Japan's home islands or to rely instead on blockade and bombing to force the surrender.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Praeger Publishers (May 30, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0275954757
• ISBN-13: 978-0275954758
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,878,858 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great single volume history of Truman and the bomb, April 13, 1999

By A Customer

This was an amazing book. My father is a history teacher and there were things in this book that not even he knew. Wainstock adeptly guides you through the Japanese situation in 1945, history about the bomb and the scientists who made it, the Potsdam Conference and Decleration and Truman's final decision. Packed with quotes from both the American and the Japanese this book is an unbiased account of the atomic bomb.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Balanced Account, August 1, 2003

By	Jerry G. (shaker hts, oh United States) - See all my reviews

In a topic that is commonly infused with rhetoric and distortion it's refreshing to read something that doesn't resort to any cheap tricks. This book is simply a balanced account of the situation that resulted in the use of atomic weapons at the end of World War II. Instead of pointing fingers and manufacturing conspiracy theories, as many books on this subject do, it's "just the facts, ma'am". Japanese peace feelers are discussed, as is the reality that these efforts were not endorsed by the militarists who ran the country. Efforts to assure the Japanese that their emperor would not be removed, which some believed would hasten the end of the war, are detailed. In addition, the viewpoints of those who favored a more strict interpretation of the unconditional surrender doctrine are explained. The revisionists who argue that the use of the bomb was unnecessary go through this story with a cleaver and chop out the parts that don't fit in with their preconceived notions. Fears about Soviet expansion in Asia are emphasized while the battle of Okinawa with it's massive U.S. casualties is ignored, for example, giving the impression that the bomb was dropped as a warning to the Russians. In fact, you could go through this book with a pair of scissors ala William Burroughs's cutup method and only keep certain parts of certain sentences, paste those parts together and voila - you've got yourself a standard issue anti-bomb dropping diatribe.

The most interesting part of the book to me dealt with the Japanese "peace party". There were some who wanted to avoid the war altogether and tried to arrange a meeting with Roosevelt to defuse tentions. Even in 1942 there were a few clear sighted individuals who knew the war could not be won and wanted to start negotiations with the U.S. This tale only shows how fully the militarists were in control. Overall, however, the writing style here is dry and academic. The details that bring history to life are occasionally present but can't overcome the less than riveting presentation. This isn't something to bring to the beach. You'll have to have a serious interest in the topic in order to like it.

The author appropriately confines his personal views to the back of the book where they belong. He says repeatedly that the allied policy of unconditional surrender was "a policy of revenge". This is flat wrong and betrays a deep lack of knowledge about the wider period in time surrounding the narrowly focused events he describes. Unconditional surrender was a response to the lessons of World War I as well as the policies of appeasement that resulted in the Second World War. It's aim was to end the war without laying the seeds of future conflict. The fact that Germany and Japan have not been a threat to world peace since 1945 proves the value of this policy. Wainstock tells us that if we had only been willing to negotiate with the likes of Hitler and his pals we could have ended the war earlier and saved a lot of lives. I'm sure he hopes our government will take this approach the next time we're confronted with two powerful dictatorships bent on conquest. Let's head to the negotiating table and work out a deal - they'll be reasonable. Hey, everybody's got the right to second guess the decisions taken a half-century ago during the largest war the world has ever seen. At least the line between opinion and fact remains solid in this book.