A poignant, eye-opening portrait of a witness to the atomic bomb who dedicated his life to treating and advocating for radiation survivors.
As a young doctor, Shuntaro Hida (1917–2017) played an essential role in the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, which he witnessed firsthand only 6 kilometers from ground zero. Tending to the overwhelming number of victims, he would spend more than 60 years developing an unparalleled understanding of the harmful effects of radiation and warning against the reckless use of nuclear power. Praise for The Heart:
"Compelling…[Petitjean] captures the pop and fizz of artistic circles in Paris during the interwar years…The Heart is a distinctively intimate undertaking, which is no small feat considering its well-known cast of characters…an unconventional and deeply personal biography." -Washington Post
"An intimate portrait of the artist and her time in the lively 1930s surrealist scene." -New York Times Book Review Marc Petitjean is a writer, filmmaker, and photographer. He has directed several documentaries, including From Hiroshima to Fukushima, on Dr. Shuntaro Hida, a survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima; Living Treasure, about Japanese kimono painter Kunihiko Moriguchi; and Zones grises, on his own search for information about the life of his father, Michel Petitjean, after his death.
Adriana Hunter studied French and Drama at the University of London. She has translated more than ninety books, including Marc Petitjean's The Heart: Frida Kahlo in Paris and Hervé Le Tellier's The Anomaly and Eléctrico W, winner of the French-American Foundation's 2013 Translation Prize in Fiction. She lives in Kent, England.
