Modern Japan

With their two swords, top-knot haircut, and legendary code of honor, the samurai were the absolute, unquestioned rulers of the country. That all began to change rapidly when the “black ships” of US Commodore Matthew Perry arrived in Tokyo Bay in 1853.

In the weeks after Japan finally surrendered to the Allies to end World War II, the world turned to the question of how to move on from years of carnage and destruction. For Harry Truman, Douglas MacArthur, Chiang Kai-shek, and their fellow victors, the question of justice seemed clear: Japan’s militaristic leaders needed to be tried and punished for the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor; shocking atrocities against civilians in China, the Philippines, and elsewhere; and rampant abuses of prisoners of war in notorious incidents such as the Bataan death march.

In this groundbreaking biography of the Japanese emperor Hirohito, Herbert P. Bix offers the first complete, unvarnished look at the enigmatic leader whose 63-year reign ushered Japan into the modern world. Never before has the full life of this controversial figure been revealed with such clarity and vividness. Bix describes what it was like to be trained from birth for a lone position at the apex of the nation's political hierarchy and as a revered symbol of divine status.

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.

The devastation of Pearl Harbor and the American victory at Midway were prelude to a greater challenge: rolling back the vast Japanese Pacific empire island by island. This masterful history encompasses the heart of the Pacific War - the period between mid-1942 and mid-1944 - when parallel Allied counteroffensives north and south of the equator washed over Japan's far-flung island empire like a "conquering tide", concluding with Japan's irreversible strategic defeat in the Marianas.

Listeners of this book will gain a clear understanding of what makes the Japanese, and their society, tick.

The inspiration for this book came from a thought that deeply intrigued me – what if an alien visited Japan, seeking to understand the life here? Where would I, who have been living in this country for over ten years, take him? Perhaps on a tour of a typical corporate office, presenting him with “the average day in the life of a salaryman”, would this be enough to capture the essence of Japanese life? Certainly not. To truly penetrate the soul of Japan requires a journey across its vast expanse, engaging with the myriad personalities that stitch together the nation's cultural and ...

This epic novel by master writer James Clavell, loosely based on the Namamugi Incident and Anglo-Satsuma War that took place in the late 1800s, is a richly researched, panoramic view of Japan’s budding relationship with the Western powers, its sweeping societal changes, and the political upheaval that followed.

LA Times Book Award winner and expert on the past and present Japan, Ian Buruma examines the transformation of a country. Following Japan's history from its opening to the West in 1853 to its hosting of the 1964 Olympics, Buruma focuses on how figures such as Commodore Matthew Perry, Douglas MacArthur, and Emperor Mitsushito helped shape this complex country.

Code of the Samurai is a 400-year-old explication of the rules and expectations embodied in Bushido, the Japanese Way of the Warrior. With a bright, conversational narrative by Thomas Cleary, this book is indispensable to corporate executives, students of Asian culture, martial artists, or anyone sincerely interested in Japan and its people.

This book is a famous thriller by Edogawa Rampo, written in 1925. A letter arrives addressed to a female author. It describes the confession of a man who lives in a chair and savors the warmth of the woman who sits in it. The description is creepy and horrifying, yet the story's punchline is excellent. It is a short story that can be finished quickly.

Without Japan, you probably wouldn't have your car...but how much do you really know about this fascinating country's rich and colorful history? For a country that’s brought us household names as diverse as Nintendo, Toyota, and Sony, shockingly little is known about Japan’s rich and complex history. Like many westerners, you may have a love of Japanese culture and cuisine.

Take a trip to old Japan with William Scott Wilson as he travels the ancient Kiso Road, a legendary route that remains much the same today as it was hundreds of years ago. The Kisoji, which runs through the Kiso Valley in the Japanese Alps, has been in use since at least 701 CE. In the 17th century, it was the route that the daimyo (warlords) used for their biennial trips - along with their samurai and porters - to the new capital of Edo (now Tokyo).

This novel, written in 1949, was Osamu Dazai's last work and was unfinished upon his death. It is set in Tokyo just after the war's end. It tells the story of a handsome editor who wants to leave his mistresses and a black marketeer woman who has a thick voice, a big appetite, and great strength but is also stunningly beautiful. It is a cheerful, humorous, and unprecedented novel, so much so that it is hard to believe that it was written by a novelist who was so depressed that he was contemplating suicide. All the reader can do, however, is to imagine the rest of the novel. Annotations [1] ...

The authors devoted five decades to the study of world history and philosophy, culminating in the masterful 11-volume Story of Civilization. In this compact summation of their work, Will and Ariel Durant share the vital and profound lessons of our collective past. Their perspective, gained after a lifetime of thinking and writing about the history of humankind, is an invaluable resource for us today.

He was the father of the occult, the founder of astrology, the discoverer of alchemy. He was Hermes Trismegistus, and as the scribe of the gods of ancient Egypt, he possessed all divine knowledge... which he passed on to humanity, though only those who have been tutored in its wonders can fully understand it.In this extraordinary 1912 book, three secret initiates to his teachings - who remain anonymous to this day - share their insight with all who seek to understand the mysterious underpinnings of the universe and our relationship with it.

This epic novel by master writer James Clavell, loosely based on the Namamugi Incident and Anglo-Satsuma War that took place in the late 1800s, is a richly researched, panoramic view of Japan’s budding relationship with the Western powers, its sweeping societal changes, and the political upheaval that followed.

The American occupation of Japan holds a singular and problematic place in the histories both of Japan and of American foreign policy. For the Japanese, the occupation marked the transition from war to peace, from authoritarianism to democracy, and from privation to plenty, making it a passage from one of the darkest chapters in Japanese history to one of the brightest.

This novel by Osamu Dazai, published in 1947, is about the life of a poet whose personality has collapsed, as told by his wife. It features an optimistic and strong-willed wife who is unhappy with her husband's unwillingness to settle down at home but still harbors dreams of a new family. The story is set in gloomy Tokyo in the aftermath of the war, but it still contains a sense of humor. After reading it, the reader will probably be left with a wry smile and something that stings in their heart. Annotations [1] Rice Balls [2] Sensei [3] Zabuton [4] Nakano [5] Gunma Prefecture [6] Nineteen ...

This is a classic detective short story by Edogawa Rampo, first published in 1925. It marks the debut of the iconic detective Kogoro Akechi, who would appear in many of Rampo's later works. The story is narrated by an unnamed man who spends his time at a café on the main street of D-Slope, watching a secondhand bookstore across the road. The bookstore owner's wife, known for her striking beauty, mysteriously fails to appear despite the open store. The narrator is soon joined by Akechi, a fellow regular at the café and a fan of detective fiction. Curious about the strange situation, the ...