Japan Inside Out (A Personally Oriented Guidebook)

By Jay Gluck

Book by Gluck, Jay, Gluck, Sumi, Gluck, Garet This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 4893600354
• ISBN13: 9784893600356
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: Personally Oriented, Publishers, Ltd
• Length: 1315 Pages
• Weight: 2.16 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 2.3" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

The Most Valuable Guide on Japan -- Bar None

If you can get a copy, you are in luck, because this is far and away the BEST guide to Japan for foreign visitors -- bar none. I used it yesterday on a trip to Ishiyamadera, the awesome, eery shrine near Lake Biwa where Lady Murasaki supposedly composed The Tale of Genji exactly 1,000 years ago. It was my son's 10th birthday, there were special exhibits on Genji, and he was blown away by the experience. Yes, this guidebook is a bit dated as to hotels, restaurants, etc., since the last (paperback, the one I have) edition appeared in 1992, but that data is easily available elsewhere, including from free materials of tourist promotion entities and from the Internet. Where this book is essential is in its explanation of much more difficult to find information - a personal take on hundreds of sites, how they fit into Japan's history and culture, and which ones are essential and which can easily be missed. Jay and family also include capsule explanations of Japan's art, sociology, religions, mythology, modern conventions, etc. in terms that are meaningful to outsiders as well as those of us who live here. Like me, Jay and family tooled around Japan in the early days on Harley Davidson cycles, and really got to know the country up close. Every other guidebook I've seen on Japan, and believe me, I look for them, is a pale shadow of this one. Sadly, an updated edition is not in the cards. Jay died at age 73 in 2000. Those of us who knew him loved his ascerbic yet enthusiastic approach to Japan, which was with him from the early post-war era to the end. A few years ago, I was advising some of the Kansai governments and tried to get Jay's son, Garet, who had collaborated on the book, to update the sections on this area around Osaka, Kobe, Nara and Kyoto for a limited publication funded by those governments to promote this area, the center of Japan's culture. Unfortunately, Garet was off in California doing his thing and unavailable. Too bad, but even as it is, this still remains an invaluable reference resource.

Better than Lonely Planet

Japan Inside Out is special. The Glucks know practically everything about Japan. Japan Inside Out is comprehensive (over 1300 pages written telegram style to save space) and every page has obviously been written with tender loving care. The Glucks, who have been in Japan since 1951, truly love the country, but have been here long enough to see through the cliches and truisms that other guidebook writers fall for. Their book is truly a labour of love, and is indispensable for anyone who really wants to see more than just Kyoto and Tokyo. Japan Inside Out is the only guidebook that will help you find the Grave of Jesus Christ in Aomori, explain those funny hand positions on the Buddha statues, or tell you where you find the snake shop in Tokyo. Japan Inside Out gives you background about everything. Armed with Japan Inside Out, you won't have to wander around a temple thinking, "Gee, I bet this place might be interesting if I knew something about its history, architecture, or its religious importance." There are interesting anecdotes and stories about everywhere you might want to visit. For the budget traveller, Japan Inside Out is full of good information about cheap places to stay and eat. Although it was written in 1990, making its information about accommodation and restaurants untrustworthy, I will never travel without it again.

THE Definitive Guide to Discovering the Heart of Japan

This book was invaluable in planning both of my trips to Japan. Wonderful reading on it's own, it is without peer in planning a trip which includes the hidden magical places that are the essence of the old and new Japan. Before and during the trips the breadth and depth of the information increased my understanding and appreciation of this fascinating culture a thousand fold. Additionally, the practical information, cultural customs, day to day "how to" suggestions, made the whole process of traveling richer and easier. I would never want to travel without it!

"Japan Inside Out" is simply the best intro to Japan.

Jay Gluck, author of the acclaimed "Zen Combat," has here provided an almost priceless service to the potential visitor to Japan. In this massive volume, Gluck salts each page with information not usually found in a travel guide: info that can actually be used! His winsome, approachable style (and that of his wife, Sumi, and son Garet) makes "Japan Inside Out" a joy to read, and there is literally no wasted space in the book. Gluck's original illustrations add much to the book's atmosphere as well. The strongest point about "Japan Inside Out" is the intimate approach to the individual's travel goals. The Gluck family's love for and exquisitely detailed knowledge of Japan gives the book a flavor of immediacy and authenticity (along with piercing wit and humor)which is glaringly absent from more recent volumes on Asian travel. Anyone planning a trip to Japan MUST read this book. Perhaps my most powerful praise for "Japan Inside Out" is that it would entertain and edify even those who never plan to visit the Land of the Rising Sun.