Issue 25 (February 2010, Volume 5, Number 1)

We kick off our first issue of 2010 reviewing a fascinating new book by George Olcott, “Conflict and Change: Foreign Ownership and the Japanese Firm.” The author looks at three foreign owned Japanese companies and compares them to three regular firms. The book provides some thought-provoking insights into Japanese employment patterns, gender equality, attitudes towards shareholders along with a host of other topics. As a byproduct key characteristics of the contemporary Japanese company are highlighted, making this an extremely useful piece of research.

Moving further afield, “Japan’s Silk Road Diplomacy” is a new work on Tokyo’s foreign policy toward the still relatively little known Central Asian states. Japan’s involvement in this increasingly important geopolitical region has intensified in recent years, culminating in 2006 with a visit by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. This book explains Tokyo’s regional involvement to date and how it is likely to develop.

Fumiko Halloran explores the new and immensely popular four volume tale by Toyoko Yamazaki, “Doomed Man” (運命の人). Yamazaki weaves a really gripping tale out of the so called “Nishiyama Incident” involving the leaking of some confidential documents relating to the secret political agreement which helped to secure the return of Okinawa. She also writes about the sad history of Okinawa, linking it to the current controversy about relocating Futenma base.

Susan Meehan gives us her verdict on the award- winning documentary movie Gaea Girls, which follows the incredibly grueling training of a group of would-be Japanese women wrestlers.

Sir Hugh Cortazzi rounds off this issue with a look at a new book on the painter Alfred East.

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