National Network for Equitable Library Service

During the 15 Year War fought between Japan and China, the eldest daughter of the Akamatsu family buried a bag of money in the back garden of her home in Hiroshima. The money had been given to her by her brother who was off to fight in China. When the Atom Bomb was dropped on the city by the Americans during the heights of the Second World War, the intensity of the bomb managed to reach the bag buried at least two feet below ground, and burn up all the paper money. The intense heat melted the coins together into a single mass, creating an artifact and symbol of the destruction caused by war and unrestricted imperialism. In a sweeping examination of the Pacific War during WWII, Hiroshima Bomb Money looks at WWII from a Japanese perspective, unique in Canadian literature. A trio of siblings tell the tale of the Japanese military in China, the immigration experience in Canada, and the horrors of the Atom Bomb explosion in Hiroshima.