Japan Books

This novel was written I believe in 1988. As it says in the back of the book, it took the author 7 years to write it. Much like Gone With The Wind, it came across to me as a once in a lifetime book and I guess this author has not written anything since. A real shame. As my title said, this was my second reading of this novel. The first perhaps at least 15 years ago. I think I even liked it more the second time. I read mostly at lunch time and while waiting for traffic to pass, so that I can get home as fast as possible. For this novel however, I kept on sneaking just another paragraph or two in between sales calls all day long and many times I had to reach for the hankerchief to wipe my eyes. I happen to love multi generational novels that take 30 to 100 years to play out such as Jeffrey Archer's "As the Crow Flies". This novel which starts in 1871 japan and goes to the end of WWII has everything that you would ever want in a novel. I would have to rate it as one of the best books that I have ever read. If you can find a copy buy it without haste.

This book was purchased for me by my DH. It is the best book I have ever read. The contents are historical and Richard must have done a tremendous amount of research in order to write this book. I could not put it down. I would highly recommend it.

This is my favorite book of all time. I borrowed it from a friend and read it years ago. I absolutely loved it, but a good friend always returns borrowed books! When I tried to buy it myself, I was told it was out of print. I was thinking about it recently and realized that I could probably find it on this site. Duh!!! Well, I just ordered it and cannot wait to receive and read it all over again and lend it to people who I know will appreciate it.

It's not just a story about love, it's about family, honor, sacrifice, friendship, culture and of course WWII from many different perspectives. I learned a lot, I laughed, I loved and I cried and when I was finished with this book, even though the ending was as happy as it could have been, I felt like I was losing my best friend. I remember when I was finished, I just sat in my room holding the book, silent in thought for almost an hour. Strange. It is a must read!!

I'm from Spain, so I read the book traslate to my languaje. That's no give me a good reality of the book, but buy it was my best idea. It've all for the lovers of japan culture and its peoples, in a dark time from the occidental culture. Richard McGill write like a big master.

I am very picky about what I read and only "go" into a storyline if it will increase my knowledge and thoroughly entertain me. This book did an exceptional job of both. I read Omamori about 5 years ago and picked it up again because I was out of good things to read (imagine that!). I knew very little about the effects of the war on Japan and loved "being there".

Whenever someone tells me they are in a reading, author or genre slump, I suggest this book. It is the best time I have ever had reading.

I found this book very interesting and educative. Not only did I get to see some magnificent photographs, I also got to learn some about the history of Japan.

This is a book about a very unfortunately forgotten era of photography. The Early works of the great photographers in Japan is finally brought to the general public and now we can see photos that we would have had to go to Japan to view. The Author has done exceptional research in getting the proper attribution to the correct photographers. I would now like to see a second volume from 1912-2007.

This book is for anyone who enjoys old photographs of other cultures. A collection of photographs that will never be seen anywhere else. The text is well done discribing all aspects of each photo. Great Book!!!!

Japan's change from a feudal society to a modern state is captured here in photos that cover its pivotal transitions between 1853-1912, when Commodore Perry compelled the reclusive nation to open its doors to the world. Some 400 old and vintage images from the period have been culled from museums, libraries and private holdings around the world - over half appear here for the first time - and thus no collection, even the most extensive Japan historical holding - will be duplicating by purchasing the 'must have' Photography in Japan 1853-1912. It will reach both specialty art libraries and college-level collections on Japanese history and culture alike.

Many of us have grown up on the myths of Japan, on the fairly tale land of samurai and geisha, of castles and 10 foot square huts. Like the knights of Europe, it can be hard to distinguish between the real living beings and the legends. However, fortunately for a brief moment the ancient and the modern intersected, and cameras were able to capture a feudal society on the brink of change. Cameras are like time machines. One little click of a button, and a small slice of the past is captured and preserved, opening a window from then to now, and allowing modern people to experience something so far lost as to almost be unreal. While they seem to be relatively modern inventions, cameras have been around for over a century, and the images captured from so long ago are a fantastic treasure.

"Photography in Japan 1853-1912" is much more than just a picture book, however. It is a complete education on the history of photography in Japan, from its barren beginnings to its flourishing boom as the country modernized and a craving for Western technology meant a constant demand for new equipment and skilled photographers. Absolutely everything is here, including the earliest known photograph of a Japanese person, a castaway rescued by sailors, as well as impressions from Eliphalet Brown Jr., the official daguerreotypist for the Perry Expedition. This could easily be a college text book, and its depth and breadth of knowledge is astounding.

But for those less than interested in a history course on photography in Japan, and just want to be blown away by the images, it also has exactly what you need. Gathering the best of 50 worldwide collections, over 350 images show the ancient Japan of our dreams, with full-page, hand-colored images of samurai in their finest armor, and beautiful geisha in their most expensive and extravagant costumes. Some of the photographs would be impossible to achieve know, like castles uncluttered by power lines and parking lots. Not that everything is just posed work. Several photographers of the time were interested in more photojournalistic "slice-of-life" shots, showing people going about their daily business blissfully unaware that these stolen moments would be studied and appreciated in a book over a hundred years into the future.

I've tried several recipes on this book already and so far, everything is good. The books contains basic chinese recipes which is very easy to follow. Very good for biginners who wants to learn how to cook chinese food.

I had bought this book in the 90s, when it was first out and learnt to do all my Chinese cooking from it...From Sweet & Sour dishes to the best steamed dumplings! Its one of my favourites and I re-ordered it again twice to give it as birthday gifts. I am not chinese but everyone loves 'my' chinese cooking !...

This book is helpful both in the recipes given and the illustrations shown. It also has several glossaries and pages of "how to" instructions which I found useful.

Wow all I can say is that I just received this book along with the Japanese one and I must say these are fairly easy to make. It has ingredients that are very easy to find in your local supermarket without having to hunt down a asian speciality store for most ingredients like a lot of other books. I agree that this is a great book if one is truly interested in maing asian dishes the easy way, it can't get easier than these books

This whole series of books is so well illustrated and written that anyone can follow them. As a culinary student and personal chef I love the fact that there is a picture of what everything is suppose to look like along the way. If you are wanting to cook and try some authentic tasting Chinese cuisine this is a great book to start with. I am hoping to collect more in the series. The format and food are both excellent!!!

I have enjoyed several of Endo's novels, including The Girl I Left Behind, Deep River, and Silence. My feeling is that he was worthy of the Nobel Prize, and I am disappointed he didn't win it. He works at the edge. His characters encounter the unusual in the midst of ordinary life, and they are changed by the encounter. In Scandal the unusual is embodied in masochism, the love of the pleasure in pain and self-annihilation. In parallel with the out of body joy of masochism, the protagonist has his own epiphany. This is all served up in a stylish and enjoyable confection. As always, the author hints that God is hiding in the interstices, waiting to appear in refracted light, darkly.

A wonderful novel. A great novel. A very enjoyable read.

Just when you think you have Endo Shusaku pegged, he comes out with a king-hitter like "Scandal". I have been reading Endo for a couple of years now, being a big fan, and "Scandal" has been one that has just further confirmed Endo's versatility and insight.

"Scandal" is very much full of self-references to Endo's own life. The main character, Suguro, is a Christian author, who has written novels called "The Life of Christ", "The Voice of Silence" and so on. Fans will recognise the echos to Endo's other works. Additionally, the characters often share names with other Endo novels. Suguro also appears in "The Sea and Poison", the highschool girl Morita Mitsu comes from "The Girl I Left Behind" and Naruse comes from the pages of "Deep River", (though with a changed given name, but life details are similar).

The similarity to Endo's other works ends there, however, and "Scandal" takes a no-holds-barred look at the depravity of the human heart and the urges that lie suppressed by the individual. As Suguro hears repeated rumours that he visits some extremely questionably places in Tokyo, he begins a hunt for the presumed imposter. Along the way, he encounters much that is disturbing about himself.

"Scandal" is a book that looks unflinchingly into the darkest recesses of the human heart. Endo seems unafraid to address those issues some would prefer to be hidden away, and he makes us look at them in ways that might make us feel uncomfortable. While not shocking in the explicit sense, the book does succeed in making one feel a touch uncomfortable with the matters dealt with. Endo shows a great deal of understanding for the nature of sexuality.

Although I would not recommend the book for everyone, I would recommend it for fans of Endo and those interested in the secret desires of people and the concealed corners of our own souls. This is an excellent book.

Scandal is the story of an acclaimed Japanese Christian novelist in old age named Suguro. At an awards ceremony honoring his distinguished career, Suguro hears disquieting rumors that he has been seen carousing in the red-light district. He enters the district to investigate the rumors and safeguard his reputation, but is unprepared for what, and who, he finds there.

Shusaku Endo uses this story as a kind of autobiography, accurate in depth of feeling, if not character and circumstance. He said in his A Life of Jesus that he thought of the Gospels as collectively forming a true portrait of Jesus, even where he saw them as fuzzy on the details. That is a good way to read Scandal, as a portrait of Endo.

Suguro struggles with old age, oncoming death, and the dissonance between his private self and his public reputation as an upstanding Christian. In many ways, Suguro is forced to confront himself; he learns that the foundations he has built his life upon are unsound, even his work, his marriage, and his religion. Endo's unflinching portrayal of himself in the figure of Suguro is thus poignant and, at times, tragic.

Scandal is about, among other things, a man going to a dangerous, uncertain place with his religion. Some religious people will not want to follow him there. On the other hand, this is not an exclusively Christian novel, and readers of any religion, or none, would have much to gain from it.

It is helpful, but not necessary, to have read some of Endo's other work to put Scandal in context. Silence and A Life of Jesus are classics. At least ten other works are in English translation.

Scandal is so rich and complex, and finally, so human, that it practically requires a second reading. But I am beginning to find that each time I read it, I demand another reading myself. I doubt that I will ever come to the end of it.

I just finished "Scandal" by Shusaku Endo which makes it the third book I've read by this author. All of the books have been excellent with "Silence" being my favorite. Endo is a Christian Japanese author and "Scandal", like "Silence" give an insight to the theological questions that go through his mind. The basic issue in Scandal is the relationship between good and evil in all of us. The main character in the story is a Japanese Christian writer (this whole book is pretty autobiographical with little attempt to hide that fact). At an awards ceremony he is confronted by the possibility that he has a double and that double has been spending a lot of time on the seedier side of life. The actions of his double threaten his reputation and he searches out this "doppleganger" to resolve that threat. Along the way he becomes interested in the nature and motives of the underworld people he comes in contact with.

Mr. Endo poses a variety of questions for the reader. As I previously mentioned, the main question is the level of good and evil in all of us. He seems to suggest that those of us who worship Jesus have within us the potential to have been one of those who stoned Jesus on His way to the Cross. While this is a shocking proposition to many, Endo's tale leaves one pondering the issue.

This book, like the other two I've read (including "The Sea and Poison"), is written in a compelling style that moves the reader along without any literary roadblocks. Even though you may quess correctly at some of the outcome, you want to see how the author gets you there. I rated this a "4" instead of a "5" because it fell a bit short of "Silence" so I knew he could do better.

Endo doesn't give you easy answers. This book explores the darker side of human nature, the side behind easy domestic life, beyond common decency, beneath worldly success. It may not be a pleasant book to read, as it doesn't gloss over the capacity for evil in a human being, but it is a book that will leave you thinking about just how authentic you are. If you're not ready to face brutal honesty, don't read this book. But if you're prepared for some deep insights into the nature of man, you shouldn't let this one pass you by.

Shadow of the Fox is a fantastic book. I'ts a great book to read if you just want to have fun reading.

This book is about a samurai named Shino that flees from his emporer,and meets a lady named Mariko who helps him hide from his emporer because the emporer will sentence Shino to death if he finds him. Then one night Shino finds out that Mariko is partly a white fox.....

The author (Ellen Steiber) is very descriptive. Also I could visualize the book in my head. This book is amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is easy on the eyes and kids will like stories about magic and animals. Kids understand the moral better when it involves a hairy animal.

Shadow of the Fox is a good story about a samurai named, Shino. Shino whom did not want to obey the lords orders, which were to kill the people and raid their homes. He met a beautiful lady who helped him gain back his strength after he suffered a cut to the arm, he quickly fell in love with her and soon enough they got married. He recievied a wedding gift from her, it was a red robe with a dragon that had a vauable stone for the eye; he overhears the village people talking one day about how the king had lost a red robe with a dragon on it that had a vauable stone for the eye, they think a fox did it. He then gets very suspicious. This book was like no other that I have read. It was actually good, it was simple to read and had a good plot. It was not at all a story that would put you to sleep. I thought it was a great book and worth buying for a child perhaps but probably not any one older or who does not like to read books that are rather short and easy to read, but I do recomend checking this book out. A favorite quote of mine form out of the book has got to be one found on page: 80. "I don't know," I admitted. "I think she is killing me. But I don't want to harm her. She once saved my life. I'm in her debt." I like this quote because he truly does love her even if she does have these powers. When she is a fox she is a white fox, which means that she is probably connected to the rice god, Inari. And goes on to tell about how they plan to talk her into praying to Inari for help to try and turn her into a normal woman, if the spell works she will become his beautiful loving wife, and nothing more; but if it fails she will die. Although i thought this was a great book it does have a drawback of being a quite predictable. I do think that this is a book for most people but is more focused toward young children who like action, fiction, and small bit of fantasy.

Shadow of the Fox is a good story about a samurai named, Shino. Shino whom did not want to obey the lords orders, which were to kill the people and raid their homes. He met a beautiful lady who helped him gain back his strength after he suffered a cut to the arm, he quickly fell in love with her and soon enough they got married. He recievied a wedding gift from her, it was a red robe with a dragon that had a vauable stone for the eye; he overhears the village people talking one day about how the king had lost a red robe with a dragon on it that had a vauable stone for the eye, they think a fox did it. He then gets very suspicious. This book was like no other that I have read. It was actually good, it was simple to read and had a good plot. It was not at all a story that would put you to sleep. I thought it was a great book and worth buying for a child perhaps but probably not any one older or who does not like to read books that are rather short and easy to read, but I do recomend checking this book out. A favorite quote of mine form out of the book has got to be one found on page: 80. "I don't know," I admitted. "I think she is killing me. But I don't want to harm her. She once saved my life. I'm in her debt." I like this quote because he truly does love her even if she does have these powers. When she is a fox she is a white fox, which means that she is probably connected to the rice god, Inari. And goes on to tell about how they plan to talk her into praying to Inari for help to try and turn her into a normal woman, if the spell works she will become his beautiful loving wife, and nothing more; but if it fails she will die. Although i thought this was a great book it does have a drawback of being a quite predictable. I do think that this is a book for most people but is more focused toward young children who like action, fiction, and small bit of fantasy.

I'm going to keep this short, but the book "Shadow of the Fox" is incredible. It is told fluently and beautifuly and to this day remains my second most favorite book I have ever read, the other being "The Starlight Crystal" by Christopher Pike. Buy this book!

Nakashima, a woodworker in the classic sense. Only wanted the tree to live on longer by working with and creating with it. This book is a great example of the love one can have for both nature and woodwork.
Any woodworker should have this book not on the shelf, but closer, to the workspace at all times.

i'm an electrician, but i really like wood... george nakashima on the other hand loved wood... his views make his work even more valuable and amazing...

Able to tug at you in so many ways. A privilege to be able to buy his product.

Like the books of James Krenov, "The Soul of a Tree" is as much a book about philosophy as it is about wood. And it's a good philosophy: slow down, take your time, play with the wood, and enjoy it. The book is really about the soul of Nakashima. He outlines some of his own personal history and how he developed his ideas about craft. There's not really much on technique here - you can certainly find better books for that - but you won't find many more inspiring.

On a personal note I had a lady call me years ago to fix up `some old furniture' she and her husband had bought years ago (in the `50's I believe.) Seems when they were young college professors they found this young oriental guy down the road who made furniture in his garage. When I looked at the furniture I told her that her young oriental friend had become quite famous and showed her this book. She was flabbergasted. What she wanted me to do was to nail up some chairs that had worked loose over time. I refused, of course, and explained to her that these were valuable pieces that should be cared for properly. I also encouraged her to contact Nakashima's Conoid Studio (if it still existed) to let them catalogue the pieces. Even after years of use by a family with kids living in the sticks the pieces were obviously crafted with meticulous care and held up surprisingly well. It was a real joy to bring them back to daily use.

Alot of philosphy, mostly biographical, has a few quotes that stick:
"Man has the audacity to try to improve the tree...."

This is a MUST read for a woodworker.

We have lived in Tokyo Japan for 2 years and just recently received this book as a gift. My family and I love it. The book explains a lot of things you will experience in a Japanese restraunt, in shops or just out walking in the city. Things that have been a mystery for 2 years have been explained, with pictures even. We liked the book so much that we have purchased a couple more copies as gifts for other Americans coming to live in Japan.

Not only is this book helpful for people about to visit Japan, but as someone about to leave this wonderful country after 3 years, Ms Reynolds book is one I'll cherish as a souvenir of my time here. Her drawings are amazingly observant and accurate as well as humorous. I look forward to seeing more of her work.

Betty Reynolds, an American artist who lived in Japan for six years, is NOT squeamish about sushi-or any of the other Japanese foods she lovingly illustrates and describes in this slender but well-packed sketchbook of culinary adventures in Japan.

With her bright watercolors and good-humored descriptions, Betty Reynolds brings back happy memories of many dining experiences in Japan: how to recognize a restaurant by the signs outside the door, the etiquette of eating sushi (and which of the decorative leaves are edible!), slurping noodles the Japanese way. She goes on to do the same for tempura, yakitori, sukiyaki, and dozens of other Japanese foods. Many uniquely Japanese experiences are portrayed: stopping by a Japanese pub (izakaya) where strangers are assured of a warm welcome; the joys of yatai, the open-air food stalls that show up on streets in evenings and at festivals; the pure bliss of unwinding at a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn); picnicking at a cherry blossom-viewing party in the park; attending a sumo wrestling match; even how to grapple with a Japanese toilet.

A keen observer, Ms. Reynolds is enough of an "insider" to go beyond the obvious in delineating a myriad of Japanese foods, and enough of an "outsider" to remain objective in recognizing the kind of only-in-Japan zaniness that occasionally crops up (sweet potato ice cream, anyone?). Each food is identified with hand-lettered descriptions in English, Japanese roman-ji (the Roman alphabet) so you can pronounce it, and kana (the Japanese syllabary) so someone Japanese can read what it is.

Just leafing through this yummy, entertaining book makes me hungry. As I write this review, I'm itching to catch the next plane to Japan (or at least go out to the nearest Japanese pub)! This book is a great introduction to the wealth of Japanese cuisine, a fine gift or memento for travelers to Japan, and useful even to identify items-and wow the chef with your knowledge-at your local sushi bar.

Not only is this book helpful for people about to visit Japan, but as someone about to leave this wonderful country after 3 years, Ms Reynolds book is one I'll cherish as a souvenir of my time here. Her drawings are amazingly observant and accurate as well as humorous. I look forward to seeing more of her work.

I LOVE sushi (my wife HATES it! :-), but there is much about eating sushi that I didn't understand....until I read this book. Wonderful pictures and great explanations for all things Japanese.

I've never been to Japan, so I can't vouch for the accuracy of this book. But the previous Amazon reviewers seem to attest that this book is fairly accurate.

If you are interested in Japanese culture (and especially sushi!) - you'll like reading this book!

It's 300+ pages of excellent Street Fighter art & material- a must-have item.

Highlights here for me...
*Character art & info- Especially great work by Kinu, Akiman, and Bengus, but many artists contribute great material.
*Black & White drawings- I love the limited amount of black & white material here, as well as the extensive full color art.
*All main SF video game versions- Including the original SF, Street Fighter II and its many versions, SF Alpha I-III, and SF III.
*Video game screen shots & endings- Near perfect text & screen shots of these great & memorable classic video games.

This 15th Anniversary Street Fighter Eternal Challenge needs to stay in print! It's an excellent book worthy of multiple printings. I highly recommend searching everywhere for a decent price. 5 stars!

If you have any interest in the artwork of Street Fighter, game character design, or game design artbooks, I think you will love this book. The artwork is amazing! I have been drawing and collecting Street Fighter artwork since I first played the game as a kid in the 90's. I have since stopped playing video and computer games completely, but I never completely stopped drawing these characters. This book was well worth the $18 I paid for it and I especially recommend it to artists (of any level) with an interest for game character design.

it's mos def a must-have for any street fighter nut. there's concept art, character profiles, interviews with the creators and artists, all on silky glossy paper. however, it seems kinda rushed, there are SO many typos and errors and crap, but it isn't really that big a deal
recommended

This is a MUST for any hardcore Street Fighter fan. Tons of amazing art, which chronicles the entire series and loads of fun interviews just busting with behind the scenes info and reasons why characters were changed from version to version.

As for the book itself, it is of HIGH quality paper and is book bound. I have not seen the other version of this book also available on Amazon.com, but I can honestly say that this version is printed on nice thick paper (not sure just how thick, or what true diehard art fans consider nice paper) and makes all the art look really great.

Buy this now!! You will NOT be disappointed! ^_^

this book is sick, no complaints whatsoever. it has everything you need to know about street fighter, yea there are some spelling errors and sum corny translations but its a small price to pay for such a good book, cop it and be happy u did.

I would recommend "A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine", by John K. Nelson, to anyone with an interest in Shinto and Japanese Culture. The book provides a detailed look at Shinto rituals at Suwa Jinja in Nagasaki, Japan. My favorite chapters were about the purification of a plot of land for a construction company, the great purification ceremony, and ringing in the New Year. The chapters about women at the shrine and how younger Japanese relate to the shrine were also really interesting from a cultural perspective.

"A Year in the Life" contains a wealth of knowledge of interest to the scholar. The book is however, easy to read - as if you were listening to a friend telling a story. A glossary of Japanese terms, end notes, maps of the shrine, and pictures broaden the reader's context and add depth to the narrative.

I really appreciated how the book was arranged in five sections. The first section gives the reader an introduction to the history of the shrine, the kami that the shrine is dedicated to, and the people who make the shrine work. The following four sections, one per season, tell the story of the major rituals at the shrine over the course of year.

Each chapter usually begins with a description of the shrine on the day of the ceremony, which allows the reader to understand how they might have felt had they arrived at the shrine for the ritual. This reminded me of my own experiences visiting a shrine in Japan. The description also set the mood for the author's descriptions of the rituals that follow.

For someone interested in the "human" side of Shinto religion, Nelson's book is a fascinating study of a religion little understood by most westerners. Its best to skip the introductory chapters, which are a bit pedantic and dry, and start with the actual description of shrine activities. Nelson is most interesting when talking about the priests and their relationship with Shinto, their "parishioners" and each other. Ultimately, it is this sort of writing that convinces the reader that Shinto is not a bunch of exotic rituals, but has a very real meaning and value in its followers lives. Written in 1996, Nelson poses a number of questions about Shinto's future throughout the book. It would be interesting if a second edition of the book was published updating the reader on the present activities of the shrine and its priests.

I recently finished reading this book in preparation for a trip I'm taking to Japan in the fall, I will be studying at University for year. I had read a couple of other books about Shinto and found them useful but what I really wanted to read was a book on Shinto practice so when I visit a Shinto Shrine I will have a more complex understanding of what is going on. In a way, this book goes beyond just understanding a Shinto practice it also covers details on things like how to finance a Shrine and how to sit so your legs fall asleep less often etc. I should clarify that this book isn't a travel guide but a well written ethnography, one that primarily focuses on one medium-large Shinto Shrine. In general the book doesn't get to detailed or too hard to read. The author spends some time with theory's and interpretations but mostly focuses on observation. Some of my favorite parts of the book are the interviews with the Guji, he had an interesting life story and some good comparative religion thoughts. Some of the younger priests also have some interesting input, some times complaints. The chapter about a woman Shinto Priest was another highlight. I believe this book would be great for undergraduates, I'm an undergrad in Religious Studies and Philosophy, or for anyone interested in Shinto practice.

It has been years, but I still remember Doc Nelson quite well, as one of the best professors I have ever had. He was capable of educating you without feeling like you were being schooled, if you know what I mean. In his book, it is much the same as in his classes. He provides such powerful imagery to invoke the spirit of the Suwa Shrine that it feels like you are there. And given that I lived in Nagasaki and have been there on several occasions, it feels to me that I have returned. You can experience through his first-person narrative the depth of ritual and see as well how it permeates into the life of the average Japanese person, who may not even realize it.

"A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine" is the best book on Shinto that I have ever read, and that is really saying something as I have read a lot of books on Shinto. It is the first book I have seen that puts things in layman's terms while not dumbing down a fairly complicated system of beliefs and cultural practices.

Instead of attempting to interpret the mysteries and cosmology of the inscrutable religion, author John Nelson puts you in the shoes of Shinto practitioners, from the highest ranking priest to the novices, to the casual visitors who drop by. He takes you behind the scenes, showing you what the day-to-day life is of a Shinto priest, what they believe and what they do. The shrine he introduces, Suwa Shrine in Nagasaki, is a fairly major one, with a full calendar of events and rituals.

On top of all this Nelson frames Shinto in its cultural context. It is not simply a religion, something to be believed in and practiced, but it is a sort of societal glue for Japan, something that connects the present to the past and provides a contextual framework that all Japanese people can recognize. It is difficult to understand this element of Shinto, because the very concept of religion is different.

One of the most fascinating sections of this book is the chapter called "I shouldn't be telling you this but..." where he allows several Shinto priests to express their private opinions under the protection of anonymity. It is exactly this kind of human touch that has been missing from all previous books. Shinto is a religion of human beings, and without this necessary voice it loses all context.

This is an excellent example of a personal take on traveling to another country with a "dream" in mind. Although primarily of interest to practitioners of karate, I would also recommend it to anyone who intends to follow such a dream as Rob Redmond - and his incredibly supportive wife - did. The chapters take the reader through a series of mishaps, sometimes comical, through to some pretty hard hitting (pun intended) events that should make all practitioners of karate who want to train in Japan, think hard about the reality of living in a Japan that may at best be indifferent to their aspirations, and at worst, may treat them with a xenophobic intolerance. RR writes in an easy, self-deprecating style that makes the book hard to put down. If you enjoyed Moving Zen and Angry White Pyjamas, you will love this book. I view it as a very valuable addition to my collection.

I read this in one sitting, late into the night. On the surface it is a book about moving to Japan on a wing and a prayer and the funny things that happened. Underneath, it's a book about maturing through the lens of another culture.

Rob's story is at heart learning to operate successfully in another culture. Two cultures, actually, the first being Japan itself and the second being Japan's version of martial arts. If you are even a tiny bit curious about either, YOTC is a fascinating read. This isn't an ordinary travelogue, but rather the tale of two years of immersion in Japanese culture, language, and society set in the city of Nagoya. Highly recommended.

I don't even want to mention that "The Year of the Chicken" is a must-have for all the karate practitioners - it's obvious. I've been reading Rob Redmond's works for about five years and must admit that I wouldn't survive in Shotokan world without his witty recommendations. But this book is not just about karate or about the culture shock. For me, it's all about love. Can you imagine the young woman who decided to give up everything she had to make your newly married husband happy? Can you imagine how it is to live in Japan without money, without a job, without a language to communicate, and even without food to eat (having an allergy to all seafood and fish, you barely can find anything to eat in Japan). Rob felt mad riding a pink Barbie girl's bike to his karate classes and being arrested for it; but we don't know how Lorma felt when police came to check if Rob really lived in this apartment. Rob mentioned that Lorna "thought it was funny. In fact, she laughed pretty hard". In fact, Lorna laughed pretty hard through the entire journey. In situations when a normal woman would just cry for hours, Lorna laughed and saved Rob's life - again and again. She was the one who deserved the black belt for what she's done for her husband.
The book it's not free from some tedious passages and can definitely benefit from editing and proofreading. But I still would like to give it five stars. It's a very honest book, and a very interesting one.

As the author has noted below, this book was born from a series of postings on his site. At the beginning of the year I went back to re-read them and was delighted to find that they were to be turned into a book. The wait was worthwhile.

For Japanophiles and (sometimes over-zealous) martial artists this book is both an affirmation of all we find fascinating about Japan and budo, and a reality check. How we perceive, teach and are taught martial arts (the author is a karatedoka but this applies equally to other arts) in the West can seem quite bizarre to the Japanese, and conversely studying martial arts in Japan might NOT be the pinnacle of training you might have thought.

Aside from this, this is a great travel story in its own right and a fascinating read. Highly recommended. I ordered direct from the author recently but hope Amazon brings him the wider coverage his work deserves.