BOOKS
Books on Japan
The Shortest History of Japan — Lesley Downer
A concise journey through Japanese history, from its prehistoric origins to modern Japan.
I found it particularly useful for understanding how Japan’s traditions, culture and relationship with the outside world developed over time.
Lost Japan — Alex Kerr
A personal exploration of Japan’s traditional culture, landscape and architecture, and the changes that have taken place as modern life has transformed the country.
Kerr’s observations made me think more deeply about the relationship between tradition and change, and about what can be lost when older ways of making, building and living are allowed to disappear.
In Praise of Shadows — Junichiro Tanizaki
An exploration of Japanese aesthetics and the beauty found in shadow, simplicity and restraint.
Tanizaki’s observations of architecture, materials, light and space made me think differently about how emptiness and subtlety can influence the way we see and experience objects.
The Roads to Sata — Alan Booth
A 2,000-mile journey through Japan, travelling mainly along the country’s smaller roads and through its rurual communities.
Booth’s observations offer a very different view of Japan from the historic cities and well-known tourist destinations. Although it wasn’t a book I found as engaging as some of the others, it gave me another perspective on everyday life and less familiar parts of the country.
Hiroshima — John Hersey
A powerful account of the experiences of six people in Hiroshima following the atomic bombing in 1945. Hersey tells their stories with a quiet, factual approach that makes the human consequences of the event difficult to ignore.
I read this book before visiting Hiroshima becuase I wanted to understand something of the history and human expeience behind the place I will encouter there. It will be an important part of my preparation for that visit.
The Inland Sea — Donald Richie
A travel memoir through the islands and communities of Japan’s Inland Sea. Richie’s observations of landscape, people and everyday life offer a glimpse of a Japan that was already changin when he travelled there.
I was drawn to the book becuase of the sense of place and observation, and becuase it looks beyond the well-know cities to the quieter landscapes and communities of Japan.