Fallout

A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES AND VANITY FAIR

New York Times bestselling author Lesley Blume reveals how a courageous reporter uncovered one of the greatest and deadliest cover-ups of the 20th century — the true effects of the atom bomb — potentially saving millions of lives.

In the days following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally. But even before the surrender, the US had begun a secret propaganda campaign to celebrate these weapons as the ultimate peacekeepers — hiding the true extent and nature of their devastation. The cover-up intensified as Americans closed the atomic cities to Allied reporters, preventing information from leaking about the horrific and lasting effects of radiation that would kill thousands of people during the months after the blast. For nearly a year, the cover-up worked — until New Yorker journalist John Hersey got into Hiroshima and reported the truth to the world.

As Hersey and his editors prepared his article for publication, they kept the whistleblowing story secret — even from most of their New Yorker colleagues. When the magazine published ‘Hiroshima’ in August 1946, it became an instant global sensation, and inspired pervasive horror about the weapons that had been covertly waged in America’s name. Since 1945, no nuclear weapons have ever been deployed in war, partly because Hersey alerted the world to their true, devastating impact. This knowledge has remained among the greatest deterrents to using them since the end of World War II.

Released on the 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, Fallout is an engrossing detective story, as well as an important piece of hidden history, which shows how one heroic scoop saved — and can still save — the world.

‘Meticulously researched … compelling … It’s clear that Lesley Blume poured herself into this project.’

-- Katie Hafner Independent

‘Blume [is] a tireless researcher and beautiful writer, who moves through her narrative with seeming effortlessness — a trick that belies the skill and hard labour required to produce such prose … Fallout is a warning without being a polemic … a book of serious intent that is nonetheless pleasant to read. There are knowable reasons for this, including Blume’s flawless paragraphs; her clear narrative structure; her compelling stories, subplots and insights.’

-- William Langewiesche The New York Times

‘Lesley Blume brings a reportorial mastery worthy of her subject, compellingly told on every page. Here, finally discovered, is the dramatic story of how John Hersey produced what is widely regarded as the greatest piece of American journalism of the 20th century.’

-- Carl Bernstein, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, co-author of All the President’s Men, and author of A Woman in Charge

‘Absorbing.’

-- Dan Hitchens UnHerd

‘Blume skillfully reconstructs the players involved and the hidden history of one of the greatest cover-ups in modern history.’

Town & Country

‘In documenting how John Hersey pulled off one of the greatest journalistic feats in history, Blume has herself pulled off a great feat. Fallout is a fast-paced, deeply reported revelation.’

-- Gay Talese, award-winning journalist, and author of High Notes and The Voyeur’s Motel

‘At a time when our world-destroying arsenal of nuclear weapons seems to have been all but forgotten, Lesley Blume’s eloquent rediscovery of the story behind John Hersey’s startling 1946 narrative ‘Hiroshima’ reminds us again of the vast human disaster even a small, primitive atomic bomb can visit upon the world.’

-- Richard Rhodes, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Making of the Atomic Bomb

‘A searing testament to the power of journalism, truth-telling, and a story to help us remember our shared humanity … an urgent read.’

-- Sarah Sentilles, author of Draw Your Weapons

‘Fallout reveals the inside story of one of history’s most astonishing journalistic scoops, the cynical government cover-up it circumvented, and the extraordinary effort it took to bring the terrible costs of the atomic age to light.’

-- Adam Higginbotham, author of Midnight in Chernobyl

‘John Hersey’s ‘Hiroshima’ has been a legend of American journalism since its first appearance in The New Yorker, and the story it tells, and how that story got told, was one we thought we knew. Now Lesley Blume shows us how little we really knew about Hersey and ‘Hiroshima’ both – and gives us a new and truly heroic story of censorship defied, taboos broken, truth sought, and editor and author committed together to serious purpose. This extraordinary book can help restore the morale of American journalism at a time when it badly needs it.’

-- Adam Gopnik, author of A Thousand Small Sanities

‘Fallout is gripping history. A big, important story; deeply researched and well told.’

-- Dan Rather

‘In Fallout, Lesley Blume brilliantly tells the story of how John Hersey made his epic book ‘Hiroshima,’ which had a profound effect on the way people came to regard atomic warfare. But the memory of his book has grown dim, and Fallout serves as an essential reminder of the lessons we once learned from Hersey’s reporting.’

-- William J. Perry, 19th US Secretary of Defense

‘Journalism at its finest … Blume’s tight, fast-moving book, pegged to the 75th anniversary of the bombing, tells Hersey’s story as he raced to gather sources, wrote in absolute secrecy, and then published a deeply empathetic, almost unbelievably distressing article.’

Bloomberg

‘[A] thrilling behind-the-scenes account of John Hersey’s seminal 1946 report on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima … This enthralling, fine-grained chronicle reveals what it takes to cut through ‘dangerously anesthetizing’ statistics and speak truth to power.’ STARRED REVIEW

Publisher’s Weekly

‘Blume uncovers the fascinating backstory to perhaps the most influential piece ever published by an American magazine: John Hersey’s 1946 report on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. A work of historical excavation … [her] narrative never flags in its drama.’ STARRED REVIEW

Kirkus Reviews

‘It is a brilliantly conceived and impeccably researched book … [A] testament of the courage of a free press etc.’

-- Lew Whittington The New York Journal of Books

‘Blume’s meticulously researched tale of the lengths to which a government will go to keep the truth from reaching its citizens might be exactly what everyone should be reading at this deeply worrisome juncture … The book is timely on its own, however, as the idea that a democracy’s highest officials might use verbal sleights of hand to distract citizens from a crisis has been cropping up of late … is at its most gripping when Blume describes the article’s immediate, dramatic impact on a public that had been kept in the dark about the human devastation in Hiroshima … It’s clear that Blume poured herself into this project. For a sense of the sheer amount of work that went into it, just read her acknowledgments. Where most authors’ acknowledgments are heartfelt but brief, Blume’s run seven pages. Her endnotes take up a whopping 64 pages … [C]ompelling.’

-- Katie Hafner The Washington Post

‘As a history lover, I find that Fallout gives powerful insights into the way that a government can weave a story to justify the actions it takes, and also into the fearless reporting about what really happened in Hiroshima. Blume’s tireless reporting gives important context to an understudied slice of US history.’

-- Andrea King Collier The Christian Science Monitor

‘[Fallout] is as riveting as it is disturbing.’

-- Fiona Capp Sydney Morning Herald

‘Fallout gives the perfect backstory on an article, and an event, that reshaped the world.’

-- Brian Dale LSJ Online

‘Totally riveting … It turns out that a lot of the issues that journalists are struggling with now, in terms of slowing down, telling a big story, telling a story of tragedy that resonates with people, was just as hard then as it is now. Hersey cracked the code a bit, and understanding how he did that is really helpful for us moving forward [in the time of COVID]. I really loved this book.’

‘[A] cliff-hanging saga of an intrepid young newsman outplaying his own government to get the facts.’

The Wall Street Journal

‘[A] brilliant book … [Fallout] tells the incredible story of how New Yorker journalist John Hersey of Hiroshima fame was able to go to the Japanese city in the aftermath of the bombing and interview six survivors … [T]he book powerfully shows how one courageous American reporter unraveled one of the deadliest cover-ups of the 20th century — the true effects of the atomic bomb.’

-- Sara Z. Kutchesfahani, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

‘Meticulously researched and elegantly written … [Fallout is] an important reminder that the biggest stories may be hiding in plain sight; that breaking news coverage is essential but may not convey the full magnitude of an event; and that a writer may be far better served by laying out a detailed, chronological account in spartan prose, even when the story is so horrific it seems to demand a polemic.’

The Nation

‘[A]n amazing testimony to the courage of [John] Hersey and a stark reminder that anti-proliferation efforts remain necessary.’

Octavian Report

‘[P]articularly relevant now that the US and Russia are moving away from agreements that restrained them from starting a new nuclear arms race. It is a reminder not to ignore the suffering and total destruction a nuclear war can unleash.’

The Seattle Times

‘[C]aptures the beginning of the Atomic Age and shows us how unprepared the world was for it. It also reminds us that even democratically elected governments are inclined to secrecy, and that this inclination rarely benefits the people they serve … [A] book that deserves a wide readership.’

The Oregonian

‘An all-too-vivid and [an] all-too-accurate account of how New Yorker journalist John Hersey's essay, ‘Hiroshima,’ was created … Blume’s work, like Hersey’s, is a testament to the power of fine journalism. She brilliantly recreates his fragile position as the ultimate whistleblower, as well as his earth-shaking reporting.’

bookreporter

‘A lucid and powerful story of a reporter who broke one of the biggest stories of the twentieth century and returned a sense of humanity to the idea of warfare … [O]ne of my favourite books this year.’

-- Jess Walter, author of The Cold Millions

‘Blume’s literary style is a seamless combination of exceptional journalism, meticulous historical investigation and superb storytelling. Her prose is accessible to both professionals as well as the general public — a feat not often achieved by authors with similar credentials … If you thought you knew everything there is to know about the dawn of the nuclear era, think again. Unless you read Fallout, your education on the subject will remain woefully inadequate. Moreover, if you want to know how your government works — then and now — you need to rush to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of this one. Highly, highly recommended.’

Bowling Green Daily News

‘A clearly written, insightful, and absorbing account of John Hersey … who worked out how to describe the overarching destruction and horror of nuclear war.’

Newtown Review of Books

‘[S]traightforward, tightly structured, and thoroughly researched … The prose is jam-packed and doesn’t pull punches, maximising impact by presenting the contrast between government-endorsed propaganda and Hersey’s survivors’ harsh realities. Even while summarising familiar events, Blume avoids redundancy, seamlessly blending well-known elements with information gleaned through her own extensive research endeavours. Despite the age of the story, it feels timely and fresh, and Blume’s attention to detail and talent for distilling a wealth of information make for a rich, gripping read … A compelling, unsettling success, [Fallout], which doubles as a history lesson and a dire warning, provides her readers with a timely and necessary reminder that will stick with them long after finishing the book.’

World Literature Today

‘An absorbing new book … If the mainstream media ever regains the public’s trust, it will be because of journalists like Hersey who genuinely seek the truth wherever it is to be found, and institutions run by editors who, like Harold Ross, aim to ‘present the truth and the whole truth without fear.’’

UnHerd

‘An engrossing book that offers us all the chance to learn the lessons from one of history’s terrible tragedies.’

Military Books Australia

Lesley Blume is a Los Angeles–based journalist, author, and biographer. Her work has appeared in Vanity Fair, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Paris Review, among many other publications. Her last nonfiction book, Everybody Behaves Badly, was a New York Times bestseller.

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