Masatoshi Asari, Japan’s foremost cherry blossom creator, received an honorary degree from Keele University on 14th July. Naoko accepted the award on his behalf. Mr. Asari is 95 years old and could not travel to the UK. He received it together with Chris Sanders, who has planted many cherry trees on the university campus, including Mr. Asari’s creations. Mr. Asari’s cherry trees are very popular in the UK and Chris Sanders has been the key person spreading his cherry varieties, which are called Matsumae cherries as a group.   Naoko holding her article about Mr. Asari   (from the right) Chris Sanders, Naoko, Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Mark Ormerod, Doctor […]

      Naoko gave a lecture for the International Dendrology Society (IDS) on 25 February 2026 at the Royal Society of Chemistry in London. It was the Society’s Winter Lecture which is a once-a-year event where they invite a speaker. About 80 people attended from all over the UK and another 80 people watched the lecture online in the UK and abroad. Naoko talked about ‘Cherry’ Ingram and his legacy, how he ‘saved’ some important varieties of cherry blossoms from extinction, the history of cherry blossoms in Japan and their symbolism. She also talked about her latest book, ‘ The Martyr and the Red Kimono’, in which cherry blossoms

                  On the evening of 19 November 2025,  Naoko had the honour to be the guest speaker at an annual event for the Patrons of the RHS. Twenty-two of the highest level of Patrons gathered at the Library at The Chesterfield Hotel in Mayfair. The room had wonderful classical decor, with oak-panelled walls, alcove book cases and hand-stitched leather armchairs. I spoke about ‘Cherry’ Ingram and my latest book ‘The Martyr and the Red Kimono’ to the Patrons, who were very engaged and interested.    

Naoko gave a talk titled ‘Cherry Ingram and his rich legacy’ to the members of the University of Bath Gardening Club on 21 October 2025 at the University of Bath. It was the first meeting of the Club this academic year and about 100 members attended. Naoko talked about the life of Collingwood ‘Cherry’ Ingram and about the symbolism of cherry blossoms, including the use of the flower for the military ideology in Japan during the Second World War. She also talked about her second English book ‘The Martyr and the Red Kimono’ in which cherry blossoms play a significant role in the story. The book is about war and

Naoko’s book ‘The Martyr and the Red Book’ was featured in The Times as one of seven must-read books about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Other books on the list included John Hersey’s Hiroshima from 1946, Kazuo Ishiguro’s A Pale View of Hills (1982) and Takashi Nagai’s The Bells of Nagasaki (1949). My book was the only one written this century. The Times wrote that ‘Abe’s understated style serves her well in recounting the appalling details of the Nagasaki bombing’s aftermath.’              

      August 9 2025 was the 80th anniversary of the Nagasaki atomic bombing –three days after Hiroshima. Naoko was invited to give a speech by Pastor Ian Stackhouse at his Guildford Baptist Church on the day.                                         Naoko talked about the Nagasaki bombing through the eyes of the 17-year-old boy, Kōichi Tagawa (later known as Tōmei Ozaki).  Kōichi survived the bombing because he was working in an underground factory making torpedoes. His mother, who was at home, was killed instantly.  He became an orphan.    Amazingly, he kept a

On July 30 2025, Naoko met the cherry creator Masatoshi Asari, 94, in Nanae, Hokkaido. Asari is Japan’s most renowned cherry tree creator and he is one of three protagonists in Naoko’s latest book, The Martyr and the Red Kimono. They met in a sushi restaurant in Nanae-cho, near Asari’s home.           Asari created 116 new cherry tree varieties after the war. They are called  ‘Matsumae Cherries’ as a group. He has sent thousands of his cherries overseas in the past 50 years, mainly to the countries that Japan had invaded or inflicted sufferings during the war.  They were his ‘peace offerings’ intended to achieve reconciliation

On July 26 2025, Naoko gave a talk in Nagasaki, which features prominently in her new book. The venue was appropriately, Nyoko-do, the former home of Dr. Takashi Nagai. He was a renowned Catholic doctor who looked after the severely injured after the August 9 1945 atomic bombing. Dr. Nagai gave a speech in November 1945 at a memorial mass held in the ruins of Urakami Cathedral to commemorate the people killed in the atomic blast. He told the survivors that the blast could have been ‘God’s Providence’. The atomic bomb detonated above Asia’s largest Cathedral and destroyed the Japanese Catholic community. The Cathedral had been built as a symbol

The Japanese edition of ‘The Martyr and the Red Kimono’ was published on July 17 2025 by Iwanami Shoten.  Its title is very different from the English edition, ‘Following the Footsteps of the Saint at Auschwitz —A story of a hibakusha and a sakuramori. It is a timely publication because this year is the 80th anniversary of  the end of the Pacific War and the dropping of the atomic bombs. The book is about war and peace and one of the protagonists is a Nagasaki atomic bomb survivor.   Hot off the press.  Naoko holding the new book  

Naoko was invited to the Nobel Institute in Oslo on June 24 2025 to meet the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Jørgen Watne Frydnes.  Mr. Frydnes and his committee gave last year’s Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo, a group of Japanese atomic bomb survivors. Mr. Frydnes was interested in my latest book ’The Martyr and the Red Kimono’ because one of the three protagonists is a Nagasaki atomic bomb survivor. The theme of the book is the quest for peace and humanity. Mr. Frydnes was going to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki in July, and had questions to ask Naoko. It was a great honour to meet such an influential