The Secret Sun (1992) by Fred Hiatt is an easy to read Japanese-themed thriller. It is about Japan’s conspiracy to build an A-bomb. Although it’s a fictional novel, in a note that ends the book, the author draws the reader’s attention to The Making of the Atomic Bomb (1986) by Richard Rhodes, a book where he probably found the inspiration for this novel. Rhodes’ book provides a brief account of Professor Nishina and Japan’s wartime efforts to build an atomic bomb.
Hiatt also acknowledges an article in Science entitled ‘Nuclear Weapons History: Japan’s Wartime Bomb Project Revealed’ written by Deborah Shapley. While Nishina and Japan’s atomic bomb project, pompously called in the The Secret Sun “The Tokyo Project”, were real, all the other characters in the novel are fictional. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. What a relief!
Fred Hiatt is editor of the Washington Post’s editorial page. He began his career with the Washington Post in 1981. Here he covered for three years military affairs. In 1987 he went to Japan, where he shared bureau chief duties with his wife, Margaret Shapiro, now an editor of the Post Magazine. Probably during this period he had the idea of writing a fictional book about Japan. In 1991, the couple began a similar four-year tour in Russia. He has twice been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his editorial writing on international issues.
Hiatt has also written two books for children: If I Were Queen of the World (1997) and Baby Talk (1999).
