Truman's Dilemma: Invasion or The Bomb - Hardcover

President Truman's determination to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki remains one of the most controversial decisions in American history. While this unprecedented action did bring about a swift end to World War II--and an equally historic surrender by the Japanese--critics still protest that the bombings were unnecessary, inhumane, and shameful.

In Truman's Dilemma: Invasion or The Bomb, military historian Paul D. Walker argues that Truman made the correct choice in a difficult situation. Faced with the possibility of massive loss of life, conservatively estimated at 800,000 to 1,000,000 for Americans alone, as well as with Japan's suicidal determination to defend the home islands in the face of an Allied invasion, Truman and his advisors realized that only a dramatic move could break this stalemate. The sudden destruction of two cities, however horrifying, seemed better than an extended campaign that would certainly kill millions of military personnel from both sides, as well as countless Japanese civilians.