Our Man in Tokyo Audiobook By Steve Kemper cover art

Our Man in Tokyo

An American Ambassador and the Countdown to Pearl Harbor

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

Our Man in Tokyo

By: Steve Kemper
Narrated by: Dan Woren
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $25.19

Buy for $25.19

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

A gripping, behind-the-scenes account of the personalities and contending forces in Tokyo during the volatile decade that led to World War II, as seen through the eyes of the American ambassador who attempted to stop the slide to war.

In 1932, Japan was in crisis. Naval officers had assassinated the prime minister and conspiracies flourished. The military had a stranglehold on the government. War with Russia loomed, and propaganda campaigns swept the country, urging schoolchildren to give money to procure planes and tanks.

Into this maelstrom stepped Joseph C. Grew, America’s most experienced and talented diplomat. When Grew was appointed ambassador to Japan, not only was the country in turmoil, its relationship with America was rapidly deteriorating. For the next decade, Grew attempted to warn American leaders about the risks of Japan’s raging nationalism and rising militarism, while also trying to stabilize Tokyo’s increasingly erratic and volatile foreign policy. From domestic terrorism by Japanese extremists to the global rise of Hitler and the fateful attack on Pearl Harbor, the events that unfolded during Grew’s tenure proved to be pivotal for Japan, and for the world. His dispatches from the darkening heart of the Japanese empire would prove prescient—for his time, and for our own.

Drawing on Grew’s diary of his time in Tokyo as well as U.S. embassy correspondence, diplomatic dispatches, and firsthand Japanese accounts, Our Man in Tokyo brings to life a man who risked everything to avert another world war, the country where he staked it all—and the abyss that swallowed it.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Steve Kemper (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers
Asia Historical Japan Military Wars & Conflicts World War II War China Imperial Japan Russia
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_webcro805_stickypopup
Compelling Account • Fascinating Depiction • Natural Narration • Fresh Perspective • Tremendous Read • Enlightening Book
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
The failure of the State Dept to 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇺🇦convey the need to prepare for the initial Japanese attacks based on decoded diplomatic communications and Gre

The failure of the US to prepare for the attacks by Japan when they had decoded diplomatic communications from Japan

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Great book. I learned SO MUCH from it. I almost put it down as the beginning chapter or two were a struggle for me but glad I kept at it.

I hope this book is required reading for all students of the military.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

An amazing book that gives you a better understanding and fresh perspective on the road to the war in the pacific.

Required reading for wwii buffs

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

A well written account of how missed opportunities and missed perception led two nations to stumble into war

Missed opportunities

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I have read a lot of books about WWII including ones that specifically focused on Pearl Harbor but I still learned new & interesting details leading up to that day of infamy. Kemper's biography of Joseph Grew - our man in Tokyo - is a compelling account of his life and his years of diplomatic service leading up to the war between the U.S. & Japan. I learned so much about the details of life in pre-war Japan -the politics, militarism, relations between Japan & the U.S. and the instability of the region. I feel I have a much better understanding of a very important time in our nation's history.

I learned so much

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

So detailed and compelling. There are many things about the lead up to the war on the Japanese side that I never knew that this book brings to light.

Insightful and so well written

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

For those really interested in history and the politics behind the events leading up to the war against Japan, this is a tremendous read. I thoroughly enjoyed and really learned a lot.

Fascinating book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Thrilling story. The author is a bit one sided in his admiration for Grew but does a wonderful job of setting the stage for the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Excellent and readable history

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Humanizes the characters in the run-up to Pearl Harbor. Illustrates how the diplomatic efforts of Ambassador Grew and his staff worked tirelessly to bring a compromise between the nations. It also reveals that some surprising Japanese leaders were against the drive to war. Thoroughly engrossing and enlightening.

A Masterpiece

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Could the attack on Pearl Harbor, been avoided if Mr. Hall, had listen to ambassidor to Japan been heeded by our government, both President Roosevelt, & Mr. Cordell Hall?? This is a great inside look at what was taking place behind the scenes in Tokyo, Pearl Harbor might have ever taken place?
l

What a great inside look at Japan, before 1941!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews