Writings
Nagai's books have been translated into numerous languages, including Chinese, Korean, French, and German. Only three of his literary works are currently available in English: We of Nagasaki, a compilation of atomic-bomb victim testimonies edited by Nagai; The Bells of Nagasaki (trans. William Johnston); and Leaving My Beloved Children Behind (trans. Maurice M. Tatsuoka and Tsuneyoshi Takai). His works were recently republished in new Japanese editions by Paulist Press.
He was not an un-nuanced pacifist. He says in Leaving These Children Behind, "Whatever people may say, the war compelled me to undertake hardships along with all the rest of the people. ... I gladly bore them for my country's sake."
Much of Nagai's writing is spiritual; Christian reflections on the experience (or, just as often, imagined future experience) of himself and the people around him, especially his children, in the aftermath of the war. His intensely personal meditations are often addressed to his children or to God, and he works out his own spiritual issues on the page as he writes in a visceral and uncensored prose. Nagai's more technical writings, in Atomic Bomb Rescue and Relief Report (Nagasaki Idai genshi bakudan kyuugo houkoku), were discovered in 1970.
In August 2010, film production company Major Oak Entertainment Ltd announced that they are producing a forthcoming feature length movie on the life of Dr. Nagai, based on the writings that he left behind. Under the working title of “All That Remains”, the movie will be directed by Ian and Dominic Higgins and filming is scheduled to commence in August 2012.
Read more about this topic: Takashi Nagai
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