Book about atomic bombing of Japan optioned by “Avatar” director James Cameron has been pulled

Book optioned by “Avatar” director pulled

NEW YORK — Publication has been halted for a disputed book about the atomic bombing of Japan that “Avatar” director James Cameron had optioned for a possible film, The Associated Press has learned.

Publisher Henry Holt and Company, responding to questions from the AP, said Monday that author Charles Pellegrino “was not able to answer” concerns about “The Last Train from Hiroshima,” including whether two men mentioned in the book actually existed.

Pellegrino had previously acknowledged that one of his interview subjects falsely claimed to be on a plane accompanying the Enola Gay, from which an atom bomb was dropped by the United States on Hiroshima in 1945.