Continuously in demand since its first, prize-winning edition was published in 1975, this is the classic history of the development of the American atomic bomb, the decision to use it against Japan, and the origins of U.S. atomic diplomacy toward the Soviet Union.

In his Preface to this new edition, the author describes and evaluates the lengthening trail of new evidence that has come to light concerning these often emotionally debated subjects. The author also invokes his experience as a historical advisor to the controversial, aborted 1995 Enola Gay exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. This leads him to analyze the impact on American democracy of one of the most insidious of the legacies of Hiroshima: the political control of historical interpretation.

Reviews of Previous Editions

“The quality of Sherwin's research and the strength of his argument are far superior to previous accounts.”

—New York Times Book Review

«Probably the definitive account for a long time to come. … Sherwin has tackled some of the critical questions of the Cold War's origins—and has settled them, in my opinion.»

—Walter LaFeber,

Cornell University

“One of those rare achievements of conscientious scholarship, a book at once graceful and luminous, yet loyal to its documentation and restrained in its speculations.”

—Boston Globe

Martin J. Sherwin