1 comments about Driving from Japan: Japanese Cars in America.

1. Very well written by an author, Wanda James, who demonstrates a clear perspective on the automobile industry. She understands important past events in the history of the motor car. One chapter provides the closest there is to a history of Subaru.

2 comments about Rural Japan: Radiance of the Ordinary.

1. This book is written in a style that takes you to Japan from your own living room. Each page teaches history and/or contemporary living. The text and photography of Japan teaches a deeper understanding of their lifestyle. Linda's "eye" brings depth, meaning and a unique visual experience of Japan. You will want to read and/or study her book over and over.



2. I'm a japanese and a lover of photograph . I amazed the reality and beauty of the images in this book. Now many of these images are hard to find in Japan. But I think you can comprehend one of the best aspects of japanese culture and tradition.

No comments about Tokyo Eyewitness Travel Guide (Eyewitness Travel Guides).

No comments about Japan: Islands of the Floating World.

No comments about Japan (Lonely Planet Travel Guides).

3 comments about Japan: An Attempt at Interpretation.

1. The author's premise is that "Japan can be understood only through study of her religious and social evolution." Toward that end, he gives a good and interesting account of the history and development of the Shinto faith.

   This book describes in detail not only Shinto's history, but also how the religion effected and influenced Japanese society and culture for well over 2000 years. There are chapters on Shinto's/Japan's response to the introduction of new religious ideas --- namely Confucianism, Buddhism, and Christianity --- and on its reaction to the rise of the shoguns, and to the sudden introduction of Western ways in the mid-nineteenth century.

   All-in-all, this is an informative, educational book.

   One word of caution is in order, however: Hearn wrote this book in 1904. It is therefore somewhat dated; and the author's flowery Victorian-era prose might put some readers off. Same can be said for his use of nineteenth century anthropological terms and references --- words such as "Aryan," for example. Still, if the reader can look past Hearn's personal prejudices, this book is a fine history of Shinto up until the year 1904.

   To complete a study of Shinto, of course, it would be necessary to learn of the religion's development through the Second World War and beyond. I am not aware of any book bringing the history of Shinto into the present, but perhaps they exist ... in English.




2. Lafcadio Hearn says that Japanese culture is like a Bonsai tree, meticulously sculpted and trimmed and controlled for thousands of years. Even during his time (1890-1904) the rules were changing and the gardner was putting away his shears, and chaos was beginning to reclaim the tree.

   However, to understand this strange plant, with the roots and bends and twists of Bonsai sculpting, one must look at its past, and the methods of shaping. From Hearn's point of view, this shaping is religion, specifically Ancestor worship and the "rule of the dead." Without insight into Japanese religious history and practices, Hearn says, you cannot understand Japan, its history or its people.

   "Japan: An attempt at interpretation" is incredibly insightful and thorough, offering a history of the various forms of Shinto, Buddhism, Confucianism and other folk-practices that shaped the national character. I am currently working on my MA in Japanese Religion, and I can verify that his research is correct, and his conclusions still hold. It is the longest of Hearn's books, and obviously a great deal of work went into it.

   All though time has passed him by, "Japan: An Attempt at Interpretation" is still a valid, interesting book, both well-written and accurate. It DOES help explain Japanese interactions and culture. Most interesting are his speculations of Japanese culture, and where it would go in his pre-WWII era. Unfortunately, some of his worst fears were realized.




3. In a nutshell, he shows how ancient Japanese society grew out of a vast network of family cults based on ancestor worship. Each family had a duty to keep the dead ancestors satisfied (or at least not unhappy), and, for the most part, this meant keeping family behavior in line with custom. There was a very fine line between custom and morality, and the immoral individual was one who broke with custom. No individual was free to break custom because, in doing so, he endangered the prosperity of the family.

   Later incursions of Buddhism and Confucianism did little to alter the core family-cult structure underlying the society. In my opinion, it is still largely in tact today, though some would likely disagree.

5 comments about Insight Guide Japan (Insight Guides).

1. I picked this book up to do some research on a possible future trip to Japan. Wanted to see, with pictures and stories, what there is to see. This book is great for that, but I keep getting distracted by the sometimes highly-opinionated (albeit fascinating) views on Japanese culture and life. Wasn't expecting such editing from a general guidebook not advertised for its opinions. Without these distractions, I'd give the book 5 stars as an advance-research book. If I had been Japanese, I might have returned it long ago (and every time I read another section, the thought still occurs to me). Can't say much more than this since I haven't been to Japan myself and haven't finished the whole book yet.



2. I feel like this book was made for the average traveler with heaps of money to spend. Not many cheap options. Plus there was no coverage of off the beaten track places. Only the main cities and sights. The pictures were quite lovely, though...

   My advice: If a trip to Japan is in your future, pick up Lonley Planet's Japan. And if your Japanese is non-existant, I hear that LP also publishes a good phrasebook.

   If you have heaps of money to spend and are the type of person who likes organized tours and planned itenaries, buy this book. If not, skip it.




3. As a Insight Guide fan I feel this is a great visual guide to Japan. You can buy much better detailed traditional-style guide books with more information, but Insight Guides arent about that imho, they aim to bring the living experience of a country or an area to you via images. Content is lightweight as with most IGs. If you can afford it buy the Lonely Planet Japan for sheer information plus this book for the experience and you cant go wrong when visiting Japan.



4. It is very good as a coffee-table book: publishers pull all the stops with beautiful, expensive, high quality photographs. There are loads of good cultural and background information, and these articles also read well (unlike writings of some supposedly insightful books like Rough Guide which are terminally, heart-stoppingly, mind-numbingly BORING).

   However, the guide is thin on practicalities, and all this premium quality glossy super-paper is too heavy to carry around. It is a pleasure to leaf through at home, though.




5. 
   
   As evidenced by these reviews, people purchase this book for different reasons. Each time a newer edition comes out I try to purchase one to update those already on my Japan shelf.
   
   I lived on the Kanto Plain outside of Tokyo-Yokohama during the years October, 1962 through November, 1964. Reaching Japan at the beginning of the buildup to the 18th Olympiad held in Tokyo and surrounding areas in September, 1964. I would enjoy going back to the land of the Rising Sun but age and cost prohibit that. At the time I resided in Japan the exchange rate was 360 yen per each American dollar. Yes, well, things do change in a generation!
   
   With my experience of living in Japan I cannot say how well a book such as this will aid in one's travels. I can only say that as I was roaming all over that area of Tokyo, Yokohama, Tokaido Road, Hakone, and Kamakura, wish a book such as this went with me.
   
   Would at the least suggest you check this book out prior to going, it can not only aid your trip planning but may be something you would want to take with you. Really, it is only a trade paperback, not that heavy.
   
   Sayonara.
   
   Semper Fi.

1 comments about Utopia Guide to Japan, South Korea & Taiwan : the Gay and Lesbian Scene in 45 Cities Including Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Seoul, Pusan and Taipei.

1. Only the naive would believe that modernization brought homosexuality to Japan. The Utopia Guide to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan introduces the present state of homosexuality in East Asia, via its historical and literary vintage, and brings it to a manageable head in this must-have handbook. Drink deep!
   
   Utopia is well known as the world's most comprehensive and authoritative English-language resource on gay Asia. As a matter of course, the book, too, covers everything you want to know about the scene in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
   
   The Utopia Guide to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan is organized alphabetically and covers pretty much every town that has at least one gay bar. The mammoth size of the task means that the editor makes use to a large extent on the up-to-date feedback of gay men and women via the Utopia website for details such as directions and type of clientele, and in some entries the reader is directed to a Utopia URL.
   
   This guide is anything but bare and goes far beyond being a mere `how to get there' manual. It is comprehensive in the types of establishments it covers: bars, saunas, discos, bookshops, restaurants, cafes, shops and salons. Furthermore, it is written with a sensitive finger on the social, cultural and political pulse of the three countries it covers. It turns the most casual riffler into a reader with its knowing commentary on various gay issues and evocative descriptions of various gay scenes and areas. A particularly memorable example of commentary is its textbox on p.114 about the state of homosexuality in Korea. And for pure descriptive stimulation, this excerpt from the memorable introductory sketch of Shinjuku Ni-Chome sticks in the mind:
   
   "While just a gaudy speck on the hemline of Tokyo's neon kimono, Ni-Chome is the main hub of Tokyo's gay scene. A carnival of shadows from dusk to dawn, here you will find 24-hour love motels, fetish mix boxes (no frills sex spaces), noodle dens and gay pride boutiques - all catering to the parade of intoxicated salarymen, transgender hostesses, gangster pimps, Sumo wrestlers, public masturbators and sexual samurai of every clan."
   
   Who could resist?!
   
   One small fault in the Tokyo pages is that it fails to distinguish between bars and what are predominantly dance clubs (specifically Ace and Arty Farty). However, to anyone who has employed the guide to get as far as Ni-Chome itself, what better way to approach that guy than with `Where can we dance?' Otherwise, directions to often difficult-to-find establishments are set out in meticulous and easy-to-follow detail, and there are ample tips, depending on the establishment, to make your experience there as enjoyable as possible. The frequent `Comments from Utopians' are especially helpful, being up to the minute information from the ground via the Utopia website. Note that these comments supplement the main coverage, and are not merely used in its stead.
   
   The look of the book is clean. Its cover features the dazzling kaleidoscope of color that is a Korean temple roof, and inside layout is spacious with generously sized font and interspersed with photos every four or five pages. Establishments that offer a discount to Utopia members are clearly marked.
   
   As the beginning of the Guide's introduction says `This guide is a slice of pink life, frozen in time on Apr 15, 2006 ... By the time you read this book, no doubt some venues will have closed, moved, or morphed, while many others with have emerged into the light of day or into the neon splash of night.'
   
   In other words, get it while it's hot!

No comments about The Essence of Japanese Cuisine: An Essay on Food and Culture.

No comments about Tokyo: City Of Stories.