What do you think the novel’s title means? How is it connected to the book’s main ideas? Could you think of an alternative title?

How do the atomic bombs impact post-WWII Japanese society as depicted in the book? What are most people’s reactions to the traumatic events of WWII (such as Mrs. Fujiwara’s or Ogata-san’s)?

How is the relationship between the narrator and her first husband presented? Why do you think they were married? What impact do you think their marriage had on Etsuko’s second marriage?