I am thinking about moving to Japan next year and was just wondering if anyone could recommend any fiction or non fiction books that might get me in the mood! Thanks, Linda
2
philipd
Lots of possible books, depending on whether you are looking for enlightenment or entertainment or both.
As an entertaining and sometimes informative travel book, Will Fergusons Hokkaido Highway Blues is a fun read. For something much heavier and academic, Japan Rising is an up to date and very informative overview of the history of Japans relationship with the outside world. If you like travel books, Josie Dew has written two books about cycling in Japan - she isn't the most insightful of travel writers, but her books are usually entertaining.
For fiction, its hard to beat almost any book by Haruki Murakami. His books can be very compulsive reading, very entertaining. Norwegian Wood is a bit overwrought, but very popular with japanese teenagers. Kafka on the Shore and The Wind Up Bird Chronicle are great reads, IMO (I know he's not to some peoples taste, but I'd recommend giving him a try and making your own mind up). On a more serious side, his non-fiction book Underground is an oddly complusive book about the ordinary people caught up in the notorious Aum sect sarin attacks in Tokyo.
3
pudman
"Dogs and Demons" by Alex Kerr but ONLY AFTER you've been here a while. Brilliant, long-overdue non-fiction tell-it-like-is book about Japan that should NOT be read while you are still in the rose-tinted throes of falling in love with unique Japan. And as long as we're pissin' in the coffee of the Japan-is-unfathomably-specially-unique crowd....how 'bout "Dave Barry Does Japan"? Hell, even in the Vatican criticism and laughter is OK. You'll have a great time. Great place. Good ruck.
4
pixelskew
one of my favorites is Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa.
also, the other Murakami, Ryu, writes more out-there twisted fiction. (Into the Miso Soup, Almost Transparent Blue, Coin Locker Babies)
Roads to Sata - guy walked length of Japan
Geography of Thought - How Asians and Westerners Think Differently... and Why by Richard Nisbett
Learning to Bow - former English teacher
Traveller's Guide to Japan. 4000 years of history put into 200 pages.
5
pixelskew
I personally thought Dave Barry Does Japan was contrived since the whole point of his (short) 2 week trip was to write a book about it. Still had funny moments though but annoyed me more than I laughed. Good read if you have never been here I bet.
7
daan!
anything by alan booth, donald richie, edward seidensticker, karel van wolferen, alex kerr, ivan morris. lafcadio hearn, james fallows, clyde prestowitz, chalmers johnson, john dower, george sansom, edward chamberlain... and so on and on...
there is a nice mix of academics and non-academics here:
http://www.jpri.org/reading.html
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