Reviews

Black Rain by Masuji Ibuse

diadorim's review against another edition

3.0

A true testimony of the horror of Hiroshima's bombing - from the few seconds, minutes and hours that followed until several years later - organized around the transcription of accounts, journals and diaries of different survivors. The priority here is not to dwell on the geopolitics of WWII but instead to give a voice to the people of a destroyed city and their quest for immediate survival and, later on, normalcy. Rich in details, locations and characters, the novel shines in its characterization of these tragic moments, but often struggle to maintain an engaging narrative, and ultimately functions much better as a documentary than it does as a novel. It's a shame, because its unique plot - a young woman's marriage prospect impacted by gossip of her potential presence at Hiroshima and her uncle's attempt to prove her health through the transcription of their shared memories - could have much better established the love, fear and guilt that bind them together.

kinosthesia's review

5.0

If you should read any book about Hiroshima it should be this one. Set after the initial devastation it is the human story of the aftermath uncluttered by statistics and facts, focusing purely on the lives people led after the bomb was dropped and the effect of Japanese societal structure on the victims. Told from a single viewpoint, the experiences were collected by the author from real survivors and woven into a narrative that neither hides the horrific nor drifts into the voyeuristic macabre.
Describing radiation sickness in a medical textbook is not even close to the reality with which survivors had to live with, the day to day reality of eating, sleeping and breathing in the poisoned land.
Its powerful and should be on everyone's reading list

olsonally's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

tdawgg07's review

1.0

for IB Humanities

unklekrinkle's review

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

ashoftheshire33's review

dark informative sad slow-paced

3.75

pili_pi's review

challenging informative reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, War, Violence, Medical trauma, and Gore

alisynamant's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

hailhex's review

challenging dark

5.0

bonnie3088's review

dark informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

"I hated war. Who cared, after all, which side won? The only important this was to end it all soon as possible: rather an unjust peace, than a "just" war!"

This is a great book that talks about the true victims and horror of war.
It is a narrative that is both through journal entry's and current narration. It provides an excellent tale on who is most affected by the atom bomb and the injustice of it all.

It is kinda boring towards the end as it kind of drags on but the story is still powerful and sad nonetheless. I felt i became more invested in Yasuko than anything else and felt her pain toward the end of the story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Child death, Suicide, and Death