A Hundred things Japanese

by Tok and No Author Credited

Book Overview

A rare book originally published in Japan. Details a hundred things that are Japanese in origin. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0870403648
• ISBN13: 9780870403644
• Release Date: January 1975
• Publisher: Japan Culture Institute
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.

Customer Reviews

An Interesting Look at a Different Culture

It seems that too many books that supposedly focus on Japanese culture instead speak mainly of the overarching organization, such as its economic system (along with the "economic miracle) or its government. While such things are extremely important to a study of Japan, they do not compromise the entirety of a people's culture. Think about it. If you were to write a book on the American way of life, you would of course talk about Washington D.C. and our capitalistic mores. Yet this does not begin to describe the common life of an American citizen, with our hot-dogs and station wagons, baseball and fairs...all of which is just is important and perhaps even more interesting. Nor would it give any real practical information to a Japanese student seeking to come to America on the way we really live. So it is with most cultural guides of Japan...and this book proves to be a great exception. It is comprised of one hundred short essays, written by foreigners, about things that they perceive as essentially Japanese. For example, they have written about tatami, the traditional mats the Japanese use to cover their floors, and manga, the Japanese comic, as well as the proper business card etiquette and how a Japanese wedding is performed. These are all extremely interesting tidbits about a very different culture, and for a serious student who might be thinking of visiting Japan, or for one interested in the realities of Japanese culture, this book is just the thing. Perhaps the only problem is its date, being written in the early 70's. Yes, we cannot think that nothing has changed in Japan in these thirty years...yet despite the time gap, this book is well worth reading.