Hiroshima in the Morning

Title Page, Copyright Page

More Praise for Hiroshima in the Morning “ If remembering lies at the heart of all memoir, the best memoir goes far deeper, asking questions about the propulsive nature of time, the consequences of forgetting, and the treacherous liberations of solitude. Hiroshima in the Morning is a memoir of the most sophisticated kind, a lyric, a quest, a universal poem.” —Beth Kephart, author of A Slant of Sun, a National Book Award finalist “ Rahna Reiko Rizzuto’s new book is intimate and global, lyrical and clear-eyed, a compelling personal narrative, and an important social document. Here past and present, Hiroshima and 9/11, interweave to tell a story of unendurable loss and tragedy but also of tenacity, survival, and rebirth.” —Lauren Kessler, author of Stubborn Twig: Three Generations in the Life of a Japanese American Family Praise for Rahna Reiko Rizzuto’s Why She Left Us “ A ferocious first novel. . . . Bold and disciplined. Rizzuto’s talent for creating vivid scenes, for getting inside strong emotions, for writing with great power, is unmistakable.” —Newsday “ Rizzuto’s characters are wonderfully well drawn—jagged, honest , and unpredictable.” —Washington Post Book World “ An enigmatic and engaging novel. . . . Rizzuto wisely leaves the mystery that drives the story intact, even as she explores it from every possible angle.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review For if Hiroshima in the morning, after the bomb has fallen, is like a dream, one must ask whose dream it is. —Peter Schwenger hiroshima in the mornin g R a h n a R e i k o R i z z u t o Published in 2010 by the Feminist Press at the City University of New York The Graduate Center 365 Fifth Avenue, Suite 5406 New York, NY 10016 feministpress.org Copyright © 2010 by Rahna Reiko Rizzuto All rights reserved This publication was made possible, in part, with support from Diane Bernard. No part of this book may be reproduced or used, stored in any information retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission from the Feminist Press at the City University of New York, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. First printing, September, 2010 Cover design by Think Studio, NYC thinkstudionyc.com Text design by Drew Stevens Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rizzuto, Rahna R. Hiroshima in the morning : a memory / by Rahna Reiko Rizzuto.     p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-55861-667-7 (alk. paper) 1. Hiroshima-shi (Japan)—Description and travel. 2. Rizzuto, Rahna R.—Travel— Japan—Hiroshima-shi. 3. Hiroshima-shi (Japan)—History—Bombardment, 1945. 4. Hiroshima-shi (Japan)—History—Bombardment, 1945—Personal narratives, Japanese. 5. Atomic bomb victims—Japan—Hiroshima-shi—Biography. 6. Pacifists—Japan—Hiroshima-shi—Biography. 7. Hiroshima-shi (Japan)— Biography. 8. Rizzuto, Rahna R. 9. Rizzuto, Rahna R.—Family. 10. Japanese American authors—Biography. I. Title. DS897.H5R59 2010 940.54’2521954—dc22 2010019658 For my children Forever and for everything ...