Doctor at Nagasaki: My First Assignment was Mercy Killing

by Masao Shiotsuki

In wartime Japan, an idealistic young intern fresh from medical school is assigned to the very hospital to which many of the victims of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki are brought. This is his deeply moving accounting of the hellish days and weeks that followed as he and his colleagues struggled to help their patients survive.

Genres: History

192 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 1989

Reviews

[Fishface · Rating 3 out of 5]

A chilling read. The book tells you more about the doctor himself than what was going on around him, but it's a fascinating character study in itself. This man was such a cool cucumber that he was keeping an eye on his watch and making mathematical calculations to determine the direction and epicenter of the blast while everyone around him was running for their lives. He was able to tell us a great deal of what was going on scientifically and gives the reader some penetrating inights into the cultural and social demands on a medical intern and Navy officer in a time of indescribable crisis. Well worth the read.