The language barrier and power imbalance that defined their early relationship followed them to the predominantly white, upstate New York suburb where they moved to raise their only daughter. There, Elizabeth grew up with the trappings of a typical American childhood and adolescence. Yet even though she felt almost no connection to her mother's distant home, she also felt out of place among her peers.Decades later, Elizabeth comes to recognize the shame and self-loathing that haunt both her and her mother, and attempts a form of reconciliation, not only to come to terms with the embattled dynamics of her family but also to reckon with the injustices that reverberate throughout the history of Okinawa and its people. Clear-eyed and profoundly humane, Speak, Okinawa is a startling accomplishment--a heartfelt exploration of identity, inheritance, forgiveness, and what it means to be an American.

    Brown, who takes readers on a journey to Japan, where she was sent as a child in the 1980s to reconnect to her family’s roots.When twelve-year-old Waka’s parents suspect she can’t understand basic Japanese, they make the drastic decision to send her to Tokyo to live for several months with her strict grandmother. Forced to say goodbye to her friends and what would have been her summer vacation, Waka is plucked from her straight-A-student life in rural Kansas and flown across the globe, where she faces the culture shock of a lifetime.In Japan, Waka struggles with reading and writing in kanji, doesn’t quite mesh with her complicated and distant Obaasama, and gets made fun of by the students in her Japanese public-school classes. Even though this is the country her parents came from, Waka has never felt more like an outsider.If she’s always been the “smart Japanese girl” in America but is now the “dumb foreigner” in Japan, where is home? And who will Waka be when she finds it?

    

    

    / At the bath house / The big bath house. In this celebration of Japanese culture and family and naked bodies of all shapes and sizes, join a little girl--along with her aunties and grandmother--at a traditional bath house. Once there, the rituals leading up to the baths begin: hair washing, back scrubbing, and, finally, the wood barrel drumroll. Until, at last, it's time, and they ease their bodies--their creased bodies, newly sprouting bodies, saggy, jiggly bodies--into the bath. Ahhhhhh!With a lyrical text and gorgeous illustrations, this picture book is based on Kyo Maclear's loving memories of childhood visits to Japan, and is an ode to the ties that bind generations of women together.

    In a rapidly modernizing Japan, the region--a stronghold of the country's old-fashioned ways--was quickly becoming a destination for chefs and artisans looking to learn about the traditions that have long shaped Japanese culture. Kirshner put on a vest and tie and took her place behind the saké bar. Before long, she met a community of craftspeople, farmers, and foragers--master woodturners, hunters, a paper artist, and a man making charcoal in his nearly abandoned village on the outskirts of town. Kirshner found each craftsperson not only exhibited an extraordinary dedication to their work but their distinct expertise contributed to the fabric of the local culture. Inspired by these masters, she devoted herself to learning how they work and live.Taking readers deep into evergreen forests, terraced rice fields, and smoke-filled workshops, Kirshner captures the centuries-old traditions still alive in Yamanaka. Water, Wood, and Wild Things invites readers to see what goes into making a fine bowl, a cup of tea, or a harvest of rice and introduces the masters who dedicate their lives to this work. Part travelogue, part meditation on the meaning of work, and full of her own beautiful drawings and recipes, Kirshner's refreshing book is an ode to a place and its people, as well as a profound examination of what it means to sustain traditions and find purpose in cultivation and craft.

    But as the relatives gather for the funeral and the stories start to flow, Yoichi’s childhood starts to resurface. The Spring afternoons playing on the floor of his father’s barber shop, the fire that ravaged the city and his family home, his parents’ divorce and a new ‘mother’.Through confidences and memories shared with those who knew him best, Yoichi rediscovers the man he had long considered an absent and rather cold father.

    In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer." —Satoru IwataSatoru Iwata was the former Global President and CEO of Nintendo and a gifted programmer who played a key role in the creation of many of the world’s best-known games. He led the production of innovative platforms such as the Nintendo DS and the Wii, and laid the groundwork for the development of the wildly successful Pokémon Go game and the Nintendo Switch. Known for his analytical and imaginative mind, but even more for his humility and people-first approach to leadership, Satoru Iwata was beloved by game fans and developers worldwide. In this motivational collection, Satoru Iwata addresses diverse subjects such as locating bottlenecks, how success breeds resistance to change, and why programmers should never say no. Drawn from the "Iwata Asks" series of interviews with key contributors to Nintendo games and hardware, and featuring conversations with renowned Mario franchise creator Shigeru Miyamoto and creator of EarthBound Shigesato Itoi, Ask Iwata offers game fans and business leaders an insight into the leadership, development and design philosophies of one of the most beloved figures in gaming history.

    Tokyo Junkie is a memoir that plays out over the dramatic 60-year growth of the megacity Tokyo, once a dark, fetid backwater and now the most populous, sophisticated, and safe urban capital in the world.Follow author Robert Whiting (The Chrysanthemum and the Bat, You Gotta Have Wa, Tokyo Underworld) as he watches Tokyo transform during the 1964 Olympics, rubs shoulders with the Yakuza and comes face to face with the city’s dark underbelly, interviews Japan’s baseball elite after publishing his first best-selling book on the subject, and learns how politics and sports collide to produce a cultural landscape unlike any other, even as a new Olympics is postponed and the COVID virus ravages the nation.A colorful social history of what Anthony Bourdain dubbed, “the greatest city in the world,” Tokyo Junkie is a revealing account by an accomplished journalist who witnessed it all firsthand and, in the process, had his own dramatic personal transformation.

    Written in fifty semi-discrete entries, Fifty Sounds is a personal dictionary of the Japanese language that draws together a variety of cultural reflections – from conformity and being an outsider, to the gendering of Japanese society, and attitudes towards food and the cult of ‘deliciousness’ – alongside probing insights into the transformative powers of language-learning. Candid, humane, witty and wise, Fifty Sounds is remarkable work that takes a transparent look at language itself, lifting the lid on the quietly revolutionary act of learning, speaking, and living in another language.

    She wasn't even born when the bombing of Hiroshima took place. Every year Nozomi joins her family at the lantern-floating ceremony to honor those lost in the bombing. People write the names of their deceased loved ones along with messages of peace, on paper lanterns and set them afloat on the river. This year Nozomi realizes that her mother always releases one lantern with no name. She begins to ask questions, and when complicated stories of loss and loneliness unfold, Nozomi and her friends come up with a creative way to share their loved ones' experiences. By opening people's eyes to the struggles they all keep hidden, the project teaches the entire community new ways to show compassion.Soul Lanterns is an honest exploration of what happened on August 6, 1945, and offers readers a glimpse not only into the rich cultural history of Japan but also into the intimate lives of those who recognize--better than most--the urgent need for peace.

    Rebirth. With its ability to grow from a single broken branch, it is the living embodiment of immortality. It is the yin that wards off malevolent spirits. It is both revered and shunned. In Tortured Willows, four Southeast Asian women writers of horror expand on the exploration of otherness begun with the Bram Stoker Award-winning anthology Black Cranes: Tales of Unquiet Women.Like the willow, women have bent and bowed under the expectations and duty heaped upon them. Like the willow, they endure and refuse to break.With exquisite poetry, Christina Sng, Angela Yuriko Smith, Lee Murray, and Geneve Flynn invite you to sit beneath the tortured willow's gravid branches and listen to the uneasy shiver of its leaves.

    A young survivor continues her quest across feudal Japan to avenge the murder of her parents, joined by her seemingly immortal protector.The eccentric Itt�-ry� sword school carves a path to Edo castle--led by the bloodthirsty Anotsu--as they obliterate all rival schools along the way. They don't know that the deadly Mugai-ry� has formed and is waiting--with the sole purpose of destroying Anotsu's clan!This epic manga series won Japan's Media Arts Award, several British Eagle Awards, and an Eisner Award, among other international accolades. Relentless and shocking, Blade takes Edo-era samurai action and combines it with modernist street idioms to create a style and mood like no other work of graphic fiction.Collects Blade of the Immortal volumes 4 to 6 in the original 7x10 serialized format, in a faux-leather hardcover treatment, and with a bookmark ribbon.

    This XXL book lifts the veil on a much-loved but little-understood art, revealing the stories and people behind the 200 most exceptional prints from 1680–1938. Drawing from the finest impressions in museums and private collections around the world, it features the work of 89 artists as well as 17 fold-outs.

    It started when he played Metal Gear Solid with school buddy Paul, becoming thoroughly captivated not only by everything Japanese, but by the character Solid Snake. When a transfer opportunity turns up at the company he works for, he doesn’t hesitate, and before he has time to change his mind he is on a plane to Tokyo. Mark is no tourist; he is there to be absorbed into this kaleidoscope of colors, with its rich heritage and honorable lifestyle. He soon learns that karoshi means overworked to death, and that being able to sing makes him a karaoke star! But what will he learn about himself? Is he embracing a new life, or simply running away? What will it take for him to stop and really look deep?Chase of the Rising Sun is an invitation to take a peek into the wonderful, colorful world that is Japan. Soak up traditions, and experience real life in Tokyo – a world apart from ‘Lost in Translation.’ Absorb the atmosphere; get to know the people, and witness first-hand one of the most devastating events in Japanese history.Drench yourself in Japanese culture, and to read a story with an unexpected and extremely powerful ending!

    From bracken to butterbur to "princess" bamboo, some of Japan's most iconic foods are foraged, not grown, in its forests, fields, and coastal waters--yet most Westerners have never heard of them.In this book, journalist Winifred Bird eats her way from one end of the country to the other in search of the hidden stories of Japan's wild foods, the people who pick them, and the places whose histories they've shaped."A beautiful and thoughtful exploration of the deep relationship--past and present--between people and wild plants in one of the world's richest foraging regions."—Samuel Thayer, author of Incredible Wild Edibles and The Forager's Harvest

    She dives its depths.But she worries that her friends have chosen to abandon her way of life. Then she meets a whale who also fears he is the last of his kind.In return for giving him hope, he gifts her a songwhich she uses to remind people of the beauty of the ocean.The Song of the Sea is a story of friendship and hope in an uncertain world.

    As an upperclassman named Usami Yuu finds out, however, looks can be deceiving. Beneath her massive frame and intense glare, Hitomi-chan is a sweet girl who just wants to overcome her social anxiety and make some friends. As Yuu gets to know her, they grow close--so close that maybe friendship won't be enough! Don't miss this charming romcom between a scary-but-sweet girl and her smaller, loving senpai.

    

    

    Each choice carries a hefty price.Umeji Tatsuya moves from Tokyo to a small town after leaving the yakuza, the Japanese mob. He knows all too well that his past can't stay buried.‘Once Yakuza, always Yakuza. The tattoos mark you for life.’Nakamura Hisako, the town’s beloved dowager, learns about Umeji’s past and tries to oust him, but Umeji just discovered her own long-held secret. If he keeps it for her, the cost is his recently regained freedom. If he doesn’t, Nakamura might have to leave her home, and he risks angering forces he barely understands… and barely believes in.As the mundane and Spirit Realm intertwine, so do the modern-day and the Pre-Meiji eras. Centuries-old rivalries flare up again, and the past returns in the present. Umeji’s second chance is only the first step of his journey to discover myth, social redemption, and found family.Rise is the first book in the Liminal Chronicles series.

    Just one year later, the bar won 2019 Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award for Best New American Cocktail Bar. Before Katana Kitten, Urushido honed his craft over several years behind the bar of award-winning eatery Saxon+Parole. In The Japanese Art of the Cocktail, Urushido shares his immense knowledge of Japanese cocktails with eighty recipes that best exemplify Japan’s contribution to the cocktail scene, both from his own bar and from Japanese mixologists worldwide. Urushido delves into what exactly constitutes the Japanese approach to cocktails, and demystifies the techniques that have been handed down over generations, all captured in stunning photography.

    It triggered a tsunami with a wall of water 128 feet high. The tsunami damaged the nuclear power plant in Fukushima triggering the nightmare scenario--a nuclear meltdown.For six days, employees at the plant worked to contain the meltdown and disaster workers scoured the surrounding flooded area for survivors.This book examines the science behind such a massive disaster and looks back at the people who experienced an unprecedented trifecta of destruction.

    Through personal essays, reflections, recipes, and photography, Yoshihiro describes stories of the farmers, makers, and exceptional ingredients – from foraged vegetables to herbs and flowers – that inspire his omakase-style menu, explains why cooking with fire is central to the restaurant, and traces the evolution of the unpretentious, innovative, and flavorful pizza for which he is now renowned globally.

    Western influences are flooding into Japan. A nomadic Irishman arrives to record this unique culture before it vanishes.In this richly imagined novel, late nineteenth century Japan is brought vividly to life. Based on the remarkable experiences of the Irish writer, Lafcadio Hearn, and drawing on his letters, essays and books, Jean Pasley explores not only Hearn’s stark, lonely childhood in Ireland and his scandalous time in America but also how Japan changed him and how he went on to become one of Japan’s most celebrated and cherished writers.

    All were of kimono motifs-fans, incense burners, peonies, and scrolls."This ghastly scene was the last thing Ruth Bennett expected to encounter when she agreed to translate a novel by a long-forgotten Japanese writer. Returning to her childhood home in Kyoto had promised safety, solitude, and diversion from the wounds she encountered in the U.S. But Ruth soon finds the storyline in the novel leaking into her everyday life. Fictional characters turn out to be real, and the past catches up with the present in an increasingly threatening way.As Ruth struggles to unravel the cryptic message hidden in the kimono tattoo, she is forced to confront a vicious killer along with her own painful family secrets.

    Yet within a quarter century it bounced back to become the second largest economy in the world after the United States. How? And why did the country’s economy then crash catastrophically in the 1990s, indefinitely stalling its seemingly unstoppable climb to world dominance? In 12 engaging, half-hour lectures, The Rise of Modern Japan answers these questions and more, profiling the changing fate of Japan and the shifting mood of its people.Noted Japan expert Professor Mark J. Ravina of the University of Texas at Austin covers the politics, economics, and culture of the island nation since World War II - a conflict that saw the end of Japan’s dream of regional conquest, which Professor Ravina calls Empire 1.0. The country’s postwar leaders radically changed course, renouncing a strong military to pursue Empire 2.0 - Japan as an economic colossus.In fascinating detail, The Rise of Modern Japan shows how the United States, by design and by accident, built Japan into an economic rival, especially for high-value products such as cars and consumer electronics. If Americans misjudged their protégé, then the Japanese eventually misjudged their own markets, precipitating a stock and real estate collapse starting in the 1990s. Then in 2001, a massive earthquake and tsunami struck northern Japan, leading to widespread destruction and the Fukushima nuclear power disaster.Professor Ravina uses the plots of popular Japanese movies and novels to illustrate how people coped with their jolting experiences: first defeat in war, followed by institutional revolution, unprecedented prosperity, crushing economic reversal, and natural and nuclear disaster. Despite also facing social instability and demographic challenges, the Japanese remained as focused, hardworking, and resilient as ever.

    However, Hideki’s duties, and the team of fit, obedient boys whom he begins to think of as a surrogate family, take up more and more of his time, just as Christine is struggling to manage the needs of their multiply-disabled daughter and their sensitive son. Things come to a head when their son is the victim of bullies. Christine begins to think that she and her children would be safer – and happier – in her native country. On a trip back to the States, she reconnects with a dangerously attractive friend from high school who, after serving and becoming wounded in Iraq, seems to understand her like no one else.Meanwhile, Daisuke Uchida, a slugger with pro potential who has returned to Japan after living abroad, may be able to help propel Hideki’s team to the national baseball tournament at Koshien. Not only would this be a dream come true for Hideki, but also it would secure the futures of his players, some of whom come from precarious homes. While Daisuke looks to Hideki for guidance, he is also distracted by Nana, a talented but troubled girl, whom he is trying to rescue from a life as a bar hostess (or worse). Hideki must ultimately choose between his team and his family.The Baseball Widow explores issues of duty, disability, discrimination, violence, and forgiveness through a cross-cultural lens. Although flawed, these characters strive to advocate for fairness, goodness, and safety, while considering how their decisions have been shaped by their backgrounds.

    In this book, Japanese culinary expert Keiko Iwasaki shares the homemade soup recipes that she makes regularly for her family and friends at home--ranging from filling one-pot meals to light and tasty accompaniments.Recipes include: Japanese-Style Oyster ChowderEgg Soup with Shrimp and Napa CabbagePork Belly Soup with VegetablesSesame Miso Soup with Beef and WatercressSummer Vegetable SoupCurried Tomato Soup with Pork MeatballsAnd many more--66 in all!All the soups in this book are made from homemade stocks that use healthy ingredients such as konbu seaweed or shiitake mushrooms, so that they are natural and additive free. The soup recipes themselves are based largely on vegetables, which are combined with seafood and meat to maximize the nutritional balance. They are also low calorie, and naturally gluten free.One of the main differences between Japanese and Western soups is that Japanese soups are cooked lightly rather than simmered for a long time. By following the recipes in this book, you can quickly and easily rustle up a warm bowl of soup to soothe your soul after a busy day.

    Born and raised in that bleak and snowy city, a young girl lives alone with her baby brother. What will be their fate…? Their story of hope and struggle begins here.

    Manners and etiquette are as valuable as gossip and deceit. Men are more rakish than ever - so far from home, societal rules seemed to be relaxed. But courting young women still requires a deft hand, a smart wit, and man with something to offer.INTERNATIONAL SCANDALIntent on being an international journalist of repute, Evelyn Prescott will do what it takes to make her mark.It doesn’t hurt her father has built a newspaper empire, but finding a scandal in Japan is no easy task.As much as she hates to admit it, she is forced to meet with the owner of the Tokyo Daily News, Ned Taylor, also an Englishman.Ned holds a deep-rooted dislike of Evelyn’s father’s approach to journalism, and Ned, a notorious rake, pushes her to see just how far Evelyn is prepared to go to get her story.

    He was a recluse monk who spent much of his life wandering and seeking after the Buddhist way. Combining his love of poetry with his spiritual evolution, he produced beautiful, lyrical lines infused with a Buddhist perception of the world.Gazing at the Moon presents over one hundred of Saigyō’s tanka—traditional 31-syllable poems—newly rendered into English by renowned translator Meredith McKinney. This selection of poems conveys Saigyō’s story of Buddhist awakening, reclusion, seeking, enlightenment, and death, embodying the Japanese aesthetic ideal of mono no aware—to be moved by sorrow in witnessing the ephemeral world.

    a dog? Probably? She adopted it anyway, and her life with this "dog" will never be boring!

    At 1,200 kilometers in length, the trail includes 88 temples and passes through diverse countryside such as idyllic bamboo groves, deserted beaches and ordinary Japanese neighborhoods. There is a long tradition of pilgrimage in Japan, dating back at least to the time of the renowned monk, poet and philosopher Kobo Daishi (774-825) who is particularly associated with this trail. John Lander, long-time resident of Japan, author and photographer, has visited and recorded every temple in evocative images, as well as providing fascinating details about the origin of the trail and what the pilgrimage means to the thousands who undertake it every year. The pilgrimage is undertaken for many reasons – to have a time of reflection away from everyday life, as a spiritual journey or as a healing period after a traumatic life experience. Along the way, pilgrims will encounter ordinary Japanese people and learn to understand the custom of o-settai, or charitable giving.

    

    Born and raised in that bleak and snowy city, a young girl lives alone with her baby brother. What will be their fate…? Their story of hope and struggle begins here.

    The food is simple to prepare but big on flavor, making it conducive to sociable snacking in between gulps of booze.From Radish and Watercress Salad and Sweetcorn with Soy Sauce Butter, to Spicy Sesame Ramen Salad and Udon Carbonara with Bacon Tempura, the recipes are impressive yet simple to achieve and no specialist equipment is needed. Plus, it includes a guide on how to stock a Japanese bar as well as how to knock up a few choice cocktails.Full of delicious dishes, Your Home Izakaya is perfect for anyone wanting to make show-off food fit for a dinner party with minimum fuss and maximum fun.

    Through vivid ethnographic details and interviews with North Korean escapees, Outsiders: Memories of Migration to and from North Korea reveals the driving forces that propelled thousands of ordinary people to risk it all in Kim Il-Sung’s “Worker’s Paradise”, only to escape back to Japan half a century later.

    For a journalist, an actor, a gallerist and a ryokan manager, these events will reverberate for the next two decades in Singapore and Japan, and change their lives forever.

    Compiled around 1235, the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu, or Ogura’s 100 Poems by 100 Poets, is one of the most important collections of poetry in Japan.Though the poets include emperors and empresses, courtiers and high priests, ladies-in- waiting and soldier-calligraphers, the collection is far more than a fascinating historical document.As the translators of this new edition note in their Introduction, “these beautiful poems have endured because their themes are universal and readily understood by contemporary readers”.Published on 11 February, 2021, to mark Japan’s National Foundation Day

    The technique celebrates the history of the object and, rather than disguising a repair, highlights it and makes it beautiful. Kintsugi has come to the West, where it found fertile ground through its kinship with the current trend of 'make do and mend', as well as for its lyrical metaphoric loading, which has been used in areas such as psychology and therapy, well-being, music, and emotional healing and spirituality. It is also being presented as a model for sustainability.This book explains what traditional kintsugi is and how it is done, giving historical examples and using interviews of traditional kintsugi masters in Japan. It reflects on the possible reasons for its development, looking especially at a cultural attitude of "creativity through destruction." Different kinds of repairs will be discussed, including the earlier "staple" repair often seen in Chinese ceramic wares and the development of yobitsugi, in which shards from different vessels are pieced together in a patchwork, and other kintsugi techniques.The underlying concept of kintsugi, which encompasses the wabi aesthetic of accepting the imperfect, has struck a chord in other fields such as fine art, textiles, graphics, and product design. The metaphoric richness of a broken pot made stronger and more beautiful is both universal and deeply personal. The book will discuss how this is being used in music and literature, with the inclusion of short works of fiction and/or poetry separating the chapters. There have been recent ceramic exhibitions with a kintsugi theme, including "Golden Seams" at the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery in Washington DC. Other exhibitions outside of ceramics that have had a kintsugi theme include a photography and installation piece by Koo Stark at the Leica Gallery, London. An example of its metaphoric application can be seen in the Radio 4 programme, 'Mending Cracks of Gold' (part of the series Something Understood, which presents 'ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life, taking a spiritual theme and exploring it through music, prose and poetry'), for which Bonnie was a contributor. There have been two TED Talks about kintsugi.

    

    "A translation of the first fourteen chapters of the Japanese novel Nans�o Satomi hakkenden (1814-1842) by Kyokutei Bakin (1767-1848)"--

    

    

    Like the rest of Japanese society, Buddhist institutions, individuals, and thought were drawn into the dynamics of confronting the modern age. Japanese Buddhism had to face multiple challenges, but it also contributed to modern Japanese society in numerous ways. Buddhism and Modernity: Sources from Nineteenth-Century Japan makes accessible the voices of Japanese Buddhists during the early phase of high modernity.The volume offers original translations of key texts--many available for the first time in English--by central actors in Japan's transition to the modern era, including the works of Inoue Enryō, Gesshō, Hara Tanzan, Shimaji Mokurai, Kiyozawa Manshi, Murakami Senshō, Tanaka Chigaku, and Shaku Sōen. All of these writers are well recognized by Buddhist studies scholars and Japanese historians but have drawn little attention elsewhere; this stands in marked contrast to the reception of Japanese Buddhism since D. T. Suzuki, the towering figure of Japanese Zen in the first half of the twentieth century. The present book fills the chronological gap between the premodern era and the twentieth century by focusing on the crucial transition period of the nineteenth century.Issues central to the interaction of Japanese Buddhism with modernity inform the five major parts of the work: sectarian reform, the nation, science and philosophy, social reform, and Japan and Asia. Throughout the chapters, the globally entangled dimension--both in relation to the West, especially the direct and indirect impact of Christianity, and to Buddhist Asia--is of great importance. The Introduction emphasizes not only how Japanese Buddhism was part of a broader, globally shared reaction of religions to the specific challenges of modernity, but also goes into great detail in laying out the specifics of the Japanese case.

    Under the tsars, Russians colonized Alaska, California, and Hawaii. The Trans-Siberian Railway linked Moscow to Vladivostok. And Stalin looked to Asia as a sphere of influence, hospitable to the spread of Soviet Communism. In Asia and the Pacific lay territory, markets, security, and glory.But all these expansionist dreams amounted to little. In We Shall Be Masters, Chris Miller explores why, arguing that Russia's ambitions have repeatedly outstripped its capacity. With the core of the nation concentrated thousands of miles away in the European borderlands, Russia's would-be pioneers have always struggled to project power into Asia and to maintain public and elite interest in their far-flung pursuits. Even when the wider population professed faith in Asia's promise, few Russians were willing to pay the steep price. Among leaders, too, dreams of empire have always been tempered by fears of cost. Most of Russia's pivots to Asia have therefore been halfhearted and fleeting.Today the Kremlin talks up the importance of "strategic partnership" with Xi Jinping's China, and Vladimir Putin's government is at pains to emphasize Russian activities across Eurasia. But while distance is covered with relative ease in the age of air travel and digital communication, the East remains far off in the ways that matter most. Miller finds that Russia's Asian dreams are still restrained by the country's firm rooting in Europe.

    Chinese President Xi Jinping's signature foreign policy endeavor, BRI has the potential to meet developing countries' needs and spur economic growth, but its implementation creates risks that outweigh its benefits. Unless the United States offers an effective alternative, China could reorient global trade networks, set technical standards that would disadvantage non-Chinese companies, lock countries into carbon-intensive power generation, increase its political influence over countries, and acquire power projection capabilities for its military. The COVID-19 pandemic has made a U.S. response more urgent as the global economic contraction has accelerated the reckoning with BRI-related debt. China's Belt and Road: Implications for the United States proposes that the United States respond to BRI by putting forward an affirmative agenda of its own, drawing on its strengths and coordinating with allies and partners to promote sustainable, secure, and green development.

    Japan had long been at civil war until brought under the rule of Oda Nobunaga, and then, following his death at the hands of a traitorous general, that of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. It was Hideyoshi who completed the unification of Japan and ushered in a period of peace.After Hideyoshi's death in 1598, a power struggle emerged between those loyal to the Toyotomi, and those who supported the second most powerful warlord, Tokugawa Ieyasu. With Hideyoshi gone, Ieyasu made moves that brought the ire of a number of his contemporaries, and soon the entire country was divided into two great armies, East and West. Leading the loyalist cause was Ishida Mitsunari, who gathered a force of around 130,000 samurai, while the Tokugawa commanded just 80,000.Both sides hurried to seize strategically vital highways and castles. These attacks and sieges culminated in the decisive Battle of Sekigahara. Fought on 21 October 1600, the battle lasted just six hours, but saw the deaths of an estimated 30,000 samurai, the destruction of a number of noble families and the creation of the Tokugawa Shogunate that was to rule Japan for 260 years of relative peace. The loyalist forces, despite their superior numbers and excellent battle formations, were defeated.In his exploration of the battle, Chris Glenn reveals the developments that led up to the outbreak of war, the characters involved, how the battle itself unfolded, and the aftermath. The weapons and armor of the time are also fully explained, along with little known customs of the samurai and their warfare.

    

    What is the horrifying truth behind the incident only whispered of in the dark corners of the internet?A website that ranks you according to how dangerous you might be to society. How far in will you go, and what will happen if you go the whole way?A beloved childhood doll with a third leg. What terrifying secrets lie inside this cursed children’s toy?Toshiden: Exploring Japanese Urban Legends Vol. 3 is back with over 50 brand new urban legends straight out of Japan, all painstakingly researched and—for many—translated into English for the first time. From supernatural creatures to medical mishaps, horrific crimes to chilling secrets of the entertainment industry, nobody does horror quite like Japan.

    Glenn runs a medical clinic in the town of Lindworm where monsters and humans coexist. His reputation for responding to the daily medical visits of monster girls is unparalleled. Whether being proposed to by a centaur injured in battle, palpating the injury of a mermaid, or suturing the delicate wounds of a flesh golem, Dr. Glenn responds to his job with grace and confidence. But, when an unsavory character seeks to steal a harpy egg, how will the unflappable Dr. Glenn respond...?

    

    In Coed Revolution Chelsea Szendi Schieder recounts the crucial stories of Japanese women's participation in these protest movements led by the New Left through the early 1970s. Women were involved in contentious politics to an unprecedented degree, but they and their concerns were frequently marginalized by men in the movement and the mass media, and the movement at large is often memorialized as male and masculine. Drawing on stories of individual women, Schieder outlines how the media and other activists portrayed these women as icons of vulnerability and victims of violence, making women central to discourses about legitimate forms of postwar political expression. Schieder disentangles the gendered patterns that obscured radical women's voices to construct a feminist genealogy of the Japanese New Left, demonstrating that student activism in 1960s Japan cannot be understood without considering the experiences and representations of these women.

    The only modern, practical guide to the ancient art of Japanese gift wrapping. Discover how to use Furoshiki – beautiful, reusable wrapping cloth, to make gift-giving extra special and joyful, and kinder to the planet too.In Japan, gift-giving is an important cultural ritual, and the presentation is just as important as the gift itself. Learn 30 exquisite yet easy wrapping styles, involving knotted or intricately folded Furoshiki cloth, to wrap bottles, bouquets of flowers and other presents. You can also use Furoshiki to wrap and carry all sorts of everyday items.With no cutting, sticking or waste, give thoughtful, beautiful gifts and say goodbye to single-use wrapping paper, bags and packaging for good.

    Their objective: to attack the invasion fleet of General Douglas MacArthur’s army in Leyte Gulf. Alerted by scouting PT boats, the U.S. 7th Fleet under the command of Rear Admiral Jesse Oldendorf prepared a deadly trap. Waiting for the enemy force were five American battleships and supporting cruisers and destroyers. Oldendorf performed the classic naval maneuver of “crossing the T” which allowed the American ships to fire broadsides at the oncoming Japanese vessels, while the enemy could only fire with their forward turrets. When the smoke cleared, the Japanese fleet had been all but annihilated.Only one destroyer escaped.The victorious American battleships were the Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, California, and Tennessee, five of the eight dreadnoughts that had been sunk at Pearl Harbor.The five ships had been raised, repaired, modified and re-manned. After three long years, they finally had their revenge.Revenge of the Dreadnoughts takes readers from the attack on Pearl Harbor, telling the story of the severe damage dealt to each ship and the incredible acts of courage performed by the sailors of each crew that morning. It continues with how each ship was raised and repaired—Herculean in scope-- and the mustering of new commanders, officers and crewmen.The final drama unfolds as of each ship returns triumphantly to the battle fleet, and the ultimate triumph at the battle of Surigao Strait.

    His new book, Bosozoku, collects both color and black and white photos featuring the Japanese youth motorcycle subculture known as 'Bosozoku'. Devotees ride insanely customized motorcycles, mainly Japanese road bikes, embellished with extravagant paint jobs and super-modified, often illegal mufflers, fairings and other customizations. Bosozoku motorcycles offer an aesthetic nod to American chopper culture, but with a highly unique look found only in Japan. This collection is a culmination of Oriol's photographs captured during many trips to Japan over the past 20 years.

    The book argues in part that the intertwined political rhetoric of the far left and far right precipitated further levels of social alienation that helped to define the political consciousness of the 'Sixties Generation' well into the twenty-first century"--

    About the SeriesRead by more than 12 million students over fifty-five years, Norton Critical Editions set the standard for apparatus that is right for undergraduate readers. The three-part format--annotated text, contexts, and criticism--helps students to better understand, analyze, and appreciate the literature, while opening a wide range of teaching possibilities for instructors. Whether in print or in digital format, Norton Critical Editions provide all the resources students need.

    

    Beginning with the harrowing early years of her life as a Japanese American child navigating a fearful west coast during World War II, Miyamoto leads readers into the landscapes that defined the experiences of twentieth-century America and also foregrounds the struggles of people of color who reclaimed their histories, identities, and power through activism and art.   Miyamoto vividly describes her early life in the racialized atmosphere of Hollywood musicals and then her turn toward activism as an Asian American troubadour with the release of A Grain of Sand—considered to be the first Asian American folk album. Her narrative intersects with the stories of Yuri Kochiyama and Grace Lee Boggs, influential in both Asian and Black liberation movements. She tells how her experience of motherhood with an Afro-Asian son, as well as a marriage that intertwined Black and Japanese families and communities, placed her at the nexus of the 1992 Rodney King riots—and how she used art to create interracial solidarity and conciliation.   Through it all, Miyamoto has embraced her identity as an Asian American woman to create an antiracist body of work and a blueprint for empathy and praxis through community art. Her sometimes barbed, often provocative, and always steadfast story is now told.

    Yet many inside and outside Japan have asked whether the country should or will return to commanding armed forces amid an increasingly challenging regional and global context and as domestic politics have shifted in favor of demonstrations of national strength.Tom Phuong Le offers a novel explanation of Japan's reluctance to remilitarize that foregrounds the relationship between demographics and security. Japan's Aging Peace demonstrates how changing perceptions of security across generations have culminated in a culture of antimilitarism that constrains the government's efforts to pursue a more martial foreign policy. Le challenges a simple opposition between militarism and pacifism, arguing that Japanese security discourse should be understood in terms of "multiple militarisms," which can legitimate choices such as the mobilization of the Japan Self-Defense Forces for peacekeeping operations and humanitarian relief missions. Le highlights how factors that are not typically linked to security policy, such as aging and declining populations and gender inequality, have played crucial roles. He contends that the case of Japan challenges the presumption in international relations scholarship that states must pursue the use of force or be punished, showing how widespread normative beliefs have restrained Japanese policy makers. Drawing on interviews with policy makers, military personnel, atomic bomb survivors, museum coordinators, grassroots activists, and other stakeholders, as well as analysis of peace museums and social movements, Japan's Aging Peace provides new insights for scholars of Asian politics, international relations, and Japanese foreign policy.