The Library of Stephen J. Farber

Folio. 8 silkscreens by Jacob Lawrence. Original black aniline leather (light scratches, rubbing); publisher's slipcase (rubbing).

LIMITED EDITION, number 332 of 1,500 copies, SIGNED BY HERSEY, LAWRENCE, AND ROBERT PENN WARREN. Hiroshima was written in the immediate aftermath of John Hersey's late 1945 tour of what remained of Hiroshima. As one of the first western journalists to view the city's ruins, Hersey began work at the request of New Yorker editor William Shawn on an article about the real-world effects of nuclear weapons. The article was published in the 31 August 1946 issue. Written in plain prose, Hersey's article created an outpouring of support amongst the American public for the sufferings of the Japanese people. A scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project claimed that after reading Hersey's article he was struck with an overwhelming shame for his role in the bomb's creation. The United States military government in Japan, while not expressly prohibiting publication of the book, nonetheless discouraged widespread printings, and so a Japanese edition did not appear until 1949. In 1999 Hersey's original article was ranked the finest piece of American journalism published in the 20th century by New York University's Department of Journalism.