A Concise History of Japan
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Narrated by:
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Eric Michael Summerer
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By:
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Brett L. Walker
About this listen
To this day, Japan's modern ascendancy challenges many assumptions about world history, particularly theories regarding the rise of the West and why the modern world looks the way it does. In this engaging new history, Brett L. Walker tackles key themes regarding Japan's relationships with its minorities, state and economic development, and the uses of science and medicine.
The book begins by tracing the country's early history through archaeological remains, before proceeding to explore life in the imperial court, the rise of the samurai, civil conflict, encounters with Europe, and the advent of modernity and empire. Integrating the pageantry of a unique nation's history with today's environmental concerns, Walker's vibrant and accessible new narrative then follows Japan's ascension from the ashes of World War II into the thriving nation of today. It is a history for our times, posing important questions regarding how we should situate a nation's history in an age of environmental and climatological uncertainties.
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Central Asia is often seen as a remote and inaccessible land on the peripheries of modern history. Encompassing Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and the Xinjiang province of China, it in fact stands at the crossroads of world events. Adeeb Khalid provides the first comprehensive history of Central Asia from the mid-18th century to today, shedding light on the historical forces that have shaped the region under imperial and Communist rule.
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Great History of a Forgotten Region
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The Birth of Classical Europe
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To an extraordinary extent we continue to live in the shadow of the classical world. At every level, from languages to calendars to political systems, we are the descendants of a “classical Europe,” using frames of reference created by ancient Mediterranean cultures. As this consistently fresh and surprising new audio book makes clear, however, this was no less true for the inhabitants of those classical civilizations themselves, whose myths, history, and buildings were an elaborate engagement with an already old and revered past - one filled with great leaders and writers....
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Excellent overview of the Classical World
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A Brief History of China
- Dynasty, Revolution and Transformation: From the Middle Kingdom to the People's Republic
- By: Jonathan Clements
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- Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins
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In his retelling of a Chinese history stretching back 5,000 years, author and China-expert Jonathan Clements focuses on the human stories which led to the powerful transformations in Chinese society - from the unification of China under its first emperor, Qinshi Huangdi, to the Mongol invasion under Genghis Khan and the consolidation of Communist rule under Mao Zedong. Clements even brings listeners through to the present day, outlining China's economic renaissance under Deng Xiaoping and Xi Jinping.
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Succinct and detailed overview of a huge topic
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A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000
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Five centuries of Irish history are explored in this informative and accessible volume. John Gibney proceeds from the beginning of Ireland’s modern period and continues through to virtually the present day, offering an integrated overview of the island nation’s cultural, political, and socioeconomic history. This succinct, scholarly study covers important historical events, including the Cromwellian conquest and settlement, the Great Famine, and the struggle for Irish independence.
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Accurate, concise, but lacks spark
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A Brief History of Japan
- Samurai, Shogun and Zen: The Extraordinary Story of the Land of the Rising Sun
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With intelligence and wit, author Jonathan Clements blends documentary and storytelling styles to connect the past, present, and future of Japan, and in broad yet detailed strokes reveals a country of paradoxes: a modern nation steeped in ancient traditions; a democracy with an emperor as head of state; a famously safe society built on 108 volcanoes resting on the world's most active earthquake zone; a fast-paced urban and technologically advanced country whose land consists predominantly of mountains and forests.
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A Brief Review of the Book
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Born in Blood and Fire: Fourth Edition
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The most highly regarded and affordable history of Latin America for our times. Born in Blood and Fire, Fourth Edition has been extensively revised to heighten emphasis on current cultural analyses of Latin American society and facilitate meaningful connections between the Encounter and the present.
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Excellent synopsis of a very broad history.
- By Carina Rahn on 01-11-21
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The Ages of Globalization
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Today's most urgent problems are fundamentally global. They require nothing less than concerted, planetwide action if we are to secure a long-term future. But humanity's story has always been on a global scale. Sachs takes listeners through a series of seven distinct waves of technological and institutional change, starting with the original settling of the planet by early modern humans through long-distance migration and ending with reflections on today's globalization.
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Narrator.
- By ROGER QUESADA on 08-03-20
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Lost Islamic History
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Islam has been one of the most powerful religious, social, and political forces in history. Over the last 1,400 years, from origins in Arabia, a succession of Muslim polities, and later empires expanded to control territories and peoples that ultimately stretched from southern France to East Africa and South East Asia. Yet many of the contributions of Muslim thinkers, scientists, and theologians, not to mention rulers, statesmen, and soldiers, have been occluded. This book rescues from oblivion and neglect some of these personalities and institutions.
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Excellent narration
- By Jamal on 06-19-22
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Scottish History for Dummies
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Want to discover how a small country on the edge of Northern Europe packs an almighty historical punch? Scottish History for Dummies is your guide to the story of Scotland and its place within the historical narratives of Britain, Europe, and the rest of the world. You'll find out how Scotland rose from the ashes to forge its own destiny, understand the impact of Scottish historical figures such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, and David Hume and be introduced to the wonderful world of Celtic religion, architecture, and monuments.
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Scottish history with no Scottish narrator :(
- By Mary Katherine Van on 10-11-21
By: William Knox PhD
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Germany
- A Nation in Its Time: Before, During, and After Nationalism, 1500-2000
- By: Helmut Walser Smith
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For nearly a century, historians have depicted Germany as a rabidly nationalist land, born in a sea of aggression. Not so, says Helmut Walser Smith, who, in this groundbreaking 500-year history, challenges traditional perceptions of Germany's conflicted past, revealing a nation far more thematically complicated than 20th-century historians have imagined.
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He may understand the past but he does not comprehend the present.
- By Max TN on 06-23-23
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How the West Won
- The Neglected Story of the Triumph of Modernity
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Modernity developed only in the West - in Europe and North America. Nowhere else did science and democracy arise; nowhere else was slavery outlawed. Only Westerners invented chimneys, musical scores, telescopes, eyeglasses, pianos, electric lights, aspirin, and soap. The question is, why? Unfortunately, that question has become so politically incorrect that most scholars avoid it. But acclaimed author Rodney Stark provides the answers in this sweeping new look at Western civilization.
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We all have a bias
- By Adam Shields on 04-21-15
By: Rodney Stark
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Bushido: The Soul of Japan (AmazonClassics Edition)
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Contemplative
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Japanese Literature
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While intensely attentive to its own tradition, Japanese literature has also embraced the outside world, particularly the influence of China. Beyond this, Japan boasts a powerful literary culture, made up of cultivated reading publics, both aristocratic and bourgeois, literary salons, specialized presses, authoritative judges of talent who cultivated and celebrated particular writers and styles, and a canon consisting of classics. This Very Short Introduction traces the rich history of Japanese literature from its beginnings over a millennium ago to the present day.
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GOOD
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What listeners say about A Concise History of Japan
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Trevor
- 04-22-23
Best Japan book on plus
Having just listened to a few other Japan history overviews in the Audible Plus library, this one was the best by far. Interestingly, the author does also include a discussion of climate change’s impact on Japan, which does make me wonder if the negative reviews here were politically biased…
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- Angela Locke
- 03-05-24
Look no further
When in search for an impressive overview of Japan’s history, this book has it all.
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- Pete
- 03-11-24
Digestible, concise, balanced. 
I greatly appreciate developing not just a an understanding of Japanese history but also a for that of the Soviet Union, China, Korea, the US and the world. Illumination of the historical roots of contemporary friction points also much appreciated. Additionally, and importantly, the inclusion of environmental ramifications of human behavior throughout time and how as a species, we have a long history of attributing human loss of life simply due to unpredictable natural events without imagination or regard to the profound ways our choices have amplified human suffering from those recurring events.
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- Richard
- 10-28-24
Good quick overview
Good overview , a place to start if this is your 1st go at Japanese History.
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-25-24
Interesting concept but disappointing
The author attempts to make Japanese history relevant to a wide audience by focusing on environmental change and other topics that are relevant to modern audience. But their summary of Japanese prehistory and the formation of the Yamato state leaves a lot to be desired.
The overview of the Yayoi and Kofun periods is sparse on details and includes some dubious information. The chronology for the Yayoi period is out of date and they claim horses were used during period, when in reality they were introduced in the 5th century AD. In general the first chapter just does not seem well informed and is only accurate in broad strokes.
I'm sure the author's speciality is in later periods, and I have not yet listened to the rest of the book yet, but the first chapter makes me question the accuracy of later chapters.
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- Karajan
- 04-01-24
Too much western ideology
The author superimposes the current western cultural wars on a history of Japan. He dedicates the a whole hour to talk about climate change and Japan's contribution to it. He looks for oppressed / oppressor narratives in every season and doesn't explore the causes of Japan's unique path, culture and historical personalities. You can do better with any other of the currently available books on Japan History. But if you want ideological talking points to criticise Japan (particularly marxist ones) this one is for you.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Mr Daniel B Copeland
- 04-06-22
Zero analysis just-the-story history
If you don’t know the basic facts of Japanese history, read this story.
If you think that history involves tackling questions such as how we know X, or whether we do actually know X with any confidence, or why X happened and what impact it had on the future …. find a proper history book.
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3 people found this helpful