Books by Hideko Tamura Snider

One Sunny Day

One Sunny Day 2nd Edition book cover. Subtitle: A Child’s Memories of Hiroshima. Watercolor painting of flames and burning buildings on a blue background with an indistinct child running from them in the foreground.

Memoir by Hideko Tamura Snider

Hideko Tamura was ten years old when the atomic bomb devastated her home in Hiroshima. In her eloquent and moving narrative, Hideko recalls her life before the bomb, the explosion itself, and the influence of that trauma upon her subsequent life in Japan and the United States.

Her years in America have given her unusual insights into the relationship between Japanese and American cultures and the impact of Hiroshima on all our lives.

"It took nearly a lifetime before I could begin to share my story. It began as a chronicle for my children who never knew their grandparents or the home I once came from. It grew into an article published by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists in 1995, and from that into a book published in 1996."

This new edition includes two expanded chapters and revisions throughout. A new epilogue brings the story up to date, continuing Hideko's advocacy for collective healing, peacebuilding and a nuclear weapons-free world. This poignant story of courage and resilience remains deeply relevant today, offering a profoundly personal testimony against the ongoing threat of nuclear warfare.

Just published by Oregon State University Press, One Sunny Day can be ordered directly through them online or by phone at 1-800-621-2736.

Reader comments:

“There have been scores of such remembrances recorded, but few that so touch and sear the soul as much as this childhood memory of one sunny day.”
Studs Terkel

This is one of the most poignant, memorable, inspiring books I have ever read. It has taken Hideko Tamura a lifetime to battle the demons that accompanied her 'survival' of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Her simple, elegant, powerful writing brilliantly conveys the psychological and spiritual anguish and eventual triumph of her journey and includes one of the most truly amazing love stories you will ever read."
John D. Callaway

When a Peace Tree Blooms

When a Peace Tree Blooms cover / A watercolor painting of a child in a red dress lying on a hill under a tree at night with a small dog and squirrel. When a Peace Tree Blooms cover with Chinese text

Story by Hideko Tamura Snider
Illustrations by Mari Kishi

A children's picture book about creating peace in the world. Will you help plant a Peace Tree? A story of affirmation for human resilience and a choice toward enduring peace through reconciliation written with gentle words and in lovely soft colors. A little girl meets an elderly couple who has been planting seeds given to them by a traveler in appreciation for the hospitality he received.

Avaliable from Amazon.com:

  • Paperback (8.5" x 8.5") - $12.50 + shipping
  • Kindle E-Book - $5.00
  • Audible audio book - $5.95

A Japanese paperback is also avaliable from Amazon.

An audio version of the story is available in English and Japanese directly from OSDI, as instant download or on a CD. A booklet (fits in a CD jewel case) with Japanese text only can also be purchased.

Avaliable directly from OSDI (Payment via PayPal)

All proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to charities supporting the children of Fukushima, who experienced radiation poisoning, as Hideko did as a child.

Note: additional shipping charges may apply for overseas orders. Please contact estelle@OSDInitiatives.com for discounted prices on larger orders or to pay via cash, check, or money order.

A Chinese translation of When a Peace Tree Blooms by April Zhang of Beijing Poplar Culture Project Co. is being distributed throughout China, Japan, the Pacific Islands and the United States. Available in China from Taobao.com or directly from OSDI in the U.S. for $8.00, includes shipping.

Reader comments:

“Trees have long been a symbol of rebirth, but perhaps nowhere more so than in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Many not only survived the atomic bombings in 1945, but thrived, giving human survivors hope that they, too, would again be healthy and whole. Hideko Tamura Snider has taken that idea a step further, suggesting to children, with thoughtful illustrations by Mari Kishi, that the trees also give the gift of understanding and healing, lessons a new generation must learn if we are ever to move forward together in peace.”
Clifton Truman Daniel, Member, Board of Directors of Harry S. Truman Presidential Library

“Hideko’s book is simply beautiful.
I’m grateful there are people in the world writing like she does.”
Christopher Alftine, MD, partner/internist – Medford Medical Clinic, LLP

“What a powerful, always timely and important message to all of us. We felt the message of hope very strongly.”
Del & Cordelia Arellano, retired therapist and teacher

“This is a beautiful story, and an important one to be told. Your choice to tell it as a story within a story makes it personal and immediate, and works, in my opinion.”
Leslie Perkins, children’s librarian

“The book that Hideko Tamura Snider and Mari Kishi have produced is the seed of the peace tree that blooms in the story. That seed first took root in their hearts and grew into a reconciling love that can redeem the horrors of history. We need to read this book with our children and grandchildren, so we too can bear -the gift of peace in a world that so desperately needs it.”
Herbert Rothschild, PhD in English Literature, Harvard University, 1966