Barefoot Gen- Manga Review

I'm sure if I bring up manga biographies the best known is likely Barefoot Gen. This series is based off the author's experiences of the end of WW2 with the bombing of Hiroshima. This manga doesn't shy away from showing how terrible life was then and death.

The Plot Gen is a 7yo boy living with his family in poverty near the end of WW2. His dad is against the war and thinks its pointless while many of the neighbors hate him for it and think Japan the land of the gods will win. The atomic bomb drops on Hiroshima killing part of Gen's family, but soon after a new life is born. Gen his mom and his new baby sister must find a way to survive in a world of starvation, suffering, and death.

My Review This series was one of the most tragic I ever read. There is so much death and suffering, but that is likely how life really was right after the bomb dropped. I will say Gen is probably one of the strongest characters I ever seen as despite how much death he witnesses he still tries to help others. If you wish to know an accurate account of life after the atomic bomb in Hiroshima I'd fully recommend this series.