The Japan Society
Publications Books & Journals

The Japan Society Review

The Japan Society Review is an digital publication covering Japan-related books and films, as well as theatre and stage productions, tv series and exhibitions. Published since 2006, it is released now on a quarterly basis and is available online on our website and printed for members. Its purpose is to inform, entertain and encourage readers to explore the works for themselves.

The Japan Society Review is possible thanks to the work of volunteers who dedicated their time and expertise to help us to promote the learning and understanding of Japanese culture and society.

To become a reviewer, please fill the form here and let us know a little about you, your professional or academic background, your interest, passion or expertise regarding Japan and the type of works you would like to review.

If you have any questions, please contact reviews@japansociety.org.uk.

So Lovely A Country Will Never Perish: Wartime Diaries of Japanese Writers, by Donald Keene

Books

So Lovely A Country Will Never Perish: Wartime Diaries of Japanese Writers, by Donald Keene

So Lovely A Country Will Never Perish: Wartime Diaries of Japanese Writers, by Donald Keene. Columbia University Press, 2010, 216 pages including index, ISBN 978-0-231-15146-7. Review by Sir Hugh Cortazzi.

The Golden Age of Japanese Okimono

Books

The Golden Age of Japanese Okimono

Dr A.M. Kanter’s Collection Laura Bordignon Antique Collectors’ Club pages 302 coplously illustrated with colour plates ISBN 978-1-85149-609-9 Review by Sir Hugh Cortazzi Laura Bordignon is an antique dealer who has developed a close interest in the arts and crafts of the Meiji era. Dr Kanter has collected many fine pieces of ivory carvings made […]

Shot by Both Sides, by Meisei Goto, translated by Tom Gill

Books

Shot by Both Sides, by Meisei Goto, translated by Tom Gill

Watching the river flowing under Ochanomizu Bridge, we read as Akaki (our narrator) muses on bridges mentioned in the stories of Kafu, and also that of Gogol, another of his favourite authors. He’s on the bridge waiting to meet a man called Yamakawa, we follow his thoughts on Gogol and that in his student days he had a khaki overcoat, where is it now?

The Year of No Money in Tokyo

Books

The Year of No Money in Tokyo

The Year of No Money in Tokyo, by Wayne Lionel Aponte, Watkins and McKay, 2009, 168 pages, ISBN 0982055005. Review by William Farr.

My Song Story in My Life – The Youth of the Showa Era

Books

My Song Story in My Life – The Youth of the Showa Era

My Song Story in My Life – The Youth of the Showa Era [わが人生の歌がたり 昭和の青春], by Hiroyuki Itsuki [五木寛之], Kadokawa Shoten, 2008, 206 pages, ISBN: 978-4-04-883994-5. Reviewed by Mikihiro Maeda.

Soul Dance: Selected Poems by ARAI Takako

Books

Soul Dance: Selected Poems by ARAI Takako

Soul Dance: Selected Poems, by Takako Arai, Translated by Jeffrey Angles, with Sawako Nakayasu and You Nakai, Mi’Te Press, 2008, 64 pages, ISBN: 978-4-9904416-0-9. Review by Adam House.

Still Walking [歩いても 歩いても]

Books

Still Walking [歩いても 歩いても]

Still Walking [歩いても 歩いても], directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda [是枝裕和], 2008, 114 minutes. Review by Susan Meehan.

Japan and its worlds: Marius Jansen and the Internationalization of Japanese Studies

Books

Japan and its worlds: Marius Jansen and the Internationalization of Japanese Studies

Japan and its worlds: Marius Jansen and the Internationalization of Japanese Studies. Edited by Martin Collcut, Kato Mikio and Ronald P. Toby. I House Press, Tokyo, 2007, 299 pages including index, ISBN 978-4-903452-08-1. Review by Ian Nish.

Yasukuni, the War Dead and the Struggle for Japan’s Past

Books

Yasukuni, the War Dead and the Struggle for Japan’s Past

Yasukuni, the War Dead and the Struggle for Japan’s Past. By John Breen (Ed), C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd, 2007, 202 pages, ISBN-10:850659079. Review by Sean Curtin.

Japan Power (Nihon Ryoku)

Books

Japan Power (Nihon Ryoku)

By Seigow Matsuoka, Everett Kennedy Brown PARCO Publishing (Ltd.) Parco Entertainment Business Bureau, January 2010, 303pares, 1600yen, ISBN: 978-4-89194-814-6. 0095 Review by Mikihiro. Maeda Seigow Matsuoka was born in 1944 in Kyoto. After serving as Object Magazine “Yu (play)” editor, visiting professor at Tokyo University, and Professor at Tezukayama Gakuin, now he is Director of Editorial […]