Most importantly, long after John Hersey's death, generations of readers who were never there in 1945 are able to understand the effect of the first atomic bomb on the people who survived its detonation. The human mind cannot fathom the split-second deaths of 100,000 people, but it can understand the enormity of the event by witnessing the lives of six people who survived it. In the fictional A Bell for Adano, Hersey used an ordinary man of Italian heritage for the hero of his story. Major Victor Joppolo is a man of the people who tries to teach democracy to the villagers he is serving; the reader's sympathy is with him. Throughout many of Hersey's books, he championed the ordinary person, whether a fighting soldier or a young American engineer in China. What better person than someone with whom the reader can identify to explain the enormity of an event as devastating as the deployment of the first atomic bomb?
John Hersey's journalism, his understated viewpoint, and his deep concern for speaking out responsibly all come together in Hiroshima. The world responded and continues to respond to his ability to state simply and clearly the stories of six ordinary people who became extraordinary on a day they never could have envisioned in their lives' plans. Hiroshima is eloquent and timeless — it speaks with conviction and evokes the compassion and understanding of all ages and races.
