The Ash Garden tells the story of Anton, a Manhattan Project scientist, his Austrian-Jewish wife Sophie, and Emiko, a documentary filmmaker who sustained severe burns during the bombing of Hiroshima at age six. Emiko encounters Anton, forcing him to address his past, as Sophie approaches the end of her struggle with a terminal disease. Bock convincingly draws these three very different characters, demonstrating how "real people" might face "big questions."

Bock readily identifies himself as a writer who's not afraid to tackle the most intimidating subjects, and that courage is reassuringly present throughout his novel. Though he reveals that research played a substantial role in the development of his novel, it is his ability to convincingly represent the human scale that makes this text truly provocative.

In this issue of Bold Type, you'll find an interview with Dennis Bock, along with an excerpt describing Emiko's first visit to the U.S., ten years after the bombing.