I'd like to nominate
Hiroshima by John Hersey. This is a short book (75-105 pages, depending on edition), from the blurb for one of the Kobo editions in the UK:
Quote:
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Hiroshima is John Hersey's timeless and compassionate account of the catastrophic event which heralded the coming of the atomic age. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author went to Japan, while the ashes of Hiroshima were still warm, to interview the survivors of the first atomic bombing. His trip resulted in this world-famous document, the most significant piece of journalism of modern times. "Nothing that can be said about this book," The New York Times wrote, "can equal what the book has to say. It speaks for itself, and in an unforgettable way, for humanity."
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From the Kindle UK description:
Quote:
"The room was filled with a blinding light. She was paralysed by fear, fixed still in her chair for a long moment. Everything fell.'
2015 is the 70th anniversary of Hiroshima, when, on 6 August at 8.15am, an atomic bomb was dropped over the Japanese city, killing one hundred thousand men, women and children in its white fury. John Hersey's spare, devastating report on the attack was first published in the New Yorker in 1946. Written in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, it chronicles what happened through the eyes of six civilians who survived against the odds. It is a classic piece of journalism, and a defining moment of the nuclear age.
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There are no US Kindle versions, however a brief trip to Canada or the UK will solve that, or go with the Kobo versions - they appear to be more broadly available. And there are certainly pBook and Audible versions available. At least one of the Kobo versions is completely free.
Kobo Canada ($2.99 CDN)
Kobo Canada ($0.00, no DRM)
Kindle (Canada) ($7.67 CDN, No DRM)
Kindle UK (£1.49)
Audible (George Guidall Narration)
Audible (Ed Asner Narration)