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Charles A. Pomeroy emerged from a nomadic childhood in the Mid-west—he was born in Beloit, Wisconsin—to enter another nomadic life in the U.S. Navy starting in 1947 at the tender age of 17. He served nine years, of which eight were as an aircrew member specialized in electronics and included two combat tours during the Korean War. That war also introduced him to Japan, a country that in 1950 was yet to recover from the destruction of WWII.
A later assignment to the Naval Attaché in Rome, Italy, in 1954 and exposure to a world beyond the military awakened in him a desire for a higher education. Serendipitously, his interest in Japanese language and arts led to contacts with the Japanese community in Rome, which inspired his return to Japan in 1957 as a student after his honorable discharge from the U.S. Navy.
Following language school and four years of study in Tokyo at Sophia University (Jochi Daigaku), Pomeroy graduated with a degree in Asian History, with emphasis on the arts. His own attempts at creating art in the form of woodblock prints failed to provide adequate income and he turned his attention to the written word as a way to earn a living. Initially, as a freelancer he translated over a dozen books, ranging from the simpler Japanese Toys to the more complex Chinese Eunuchs. Morphing from freelance translator into a journalist, he worked as a correspondent specializing in coverage of Japan’s healthcare industry from 1966 and until he retired in 2004.
Pomeroy’s personal life was marked by the failure of an earlier, student-era marriage, but he found his life-long mate, Atsuko Kobayashi, in 1986. As well, he eventually became fond of her home town, Otsuchi, in Iwate Prefecture, where they built their retirement home that also included a studio for creating woodblock prints. Their blissful lifestyle there end on March 11, 2011, when the Great East Japan Earthquake and following tsunami destroyed Otsuchi along with towns along Japan’s entire Sanriku coast as well as spawning the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Pomeroy’s return to Tokyo was followed by a return to writing.
As an author, Pomeroy’s first book, Traditional Crafts of Japan (Weatherhill) was published in 1967. In the mid-1990s, as General Editor he focused the knowledge of five colleagues to put together a history book, Foreign Correspondents in Japan (Tuttle), published in 1998. A more recent book, Pharma Delegates, published in 2013, was a commissioned work. His latest book, Tsunami Reflections, presents the little-known story of Otsuchi and its destruction as well as the loss of family members, a story along with those of other Sanriku towns that have been overshadowed by the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4022593.Charles_A_Pomeroy
Reviewed by Roy T. James for Readers' Favorite
Tsunami Reflections: Otsuchi Remembered by Charles A. Pomeroy begins with the author’s background in Japan and reasons for his retirement in Otsuchi. Charles then describes the catastrophe and provides a timeline of unfolding events, putting them into perspective both geographically and historically, with a detailed description of the town. A broad idea of the immediate and extended neighborhoods, with an account of Otsuchi’s main festivals, establishes a sense of place, human relationships and life in general. Relevant history and scientific background of tsunamis prior to a description of the one that destroyed Otsuchi, along with maps, charts, figures, photos, and video links describe the devastation in Otsuchi and surrounding communities. Charles also outlines the aftermath, especially the plans for reconstruction.
Charles makes it known that earthquakes and tsunamis are not a new thing for Japan. As the book says, especially for Sanriku coast, previous disasters have been recorded since the 15th century - the Keicho tsunami in December of 1611, the Meiji Sanriku tsunami in June of 1896 and the Showa Sanriku tsunami in March, all of which have been deadly, in addition to a few less lethal ones. The search for bodies of family members, closure, humanitarian aid, plans for reconstruction, and the author’s thoughts on re-inventing Otsuchi, interspersed with rich, telling photographs are a poignant reminder of unspeakable suffering the people at that time had to go through as well as being a testimony to the remarkable resilience shown by them in reconstructing their lives. This book presents a good report about the tsunami, especially from the societal point of view. An index would have been a beneficial addition.
