 Japan Forum |
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Reviews
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Date of last review
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1
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11425
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March 16, 2004
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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None indicated
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10.0
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Description:
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In Dogs and Demons, Alex Kerr chronicles the many facets of Japan's recent, and chronic, crises -- from the failure of its banks and pension funds to the decline of its once magnificent modern cinema. He is the first to give a full report on the nation's endangered environment -- its seashores lined with concrete, its roads leading to nowhere in the mountains -- as well as its "monument frenzy," the destruction of old cities such as Kyoto and construction of drab new ones, and the attendant collapse of its tourist industry. Kerr writes with humor and passion, for "passion," he says, "is part of the story. Millions of Japanese feel as heartbroken at what is going on as I do. My Japanese friends tell me, 'Please write this -- for us.'"
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Affiliate link:
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Buy from Amazon
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Decommissioned ex-admin
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Posts: 6,647
Registered: July 2002
Location: Austrasia
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Author
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Maciamo
Decommissioned ex-admin
Registered: July 2002
Location: Austrasia
Posts: 6647
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Review Date: March 16, 2004
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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very instructive though shocking, a must-read for anyone interested in Japan
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Cons:
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sometimes a bit exagerated
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Alex Kerr is an American who firs came to Japan when he was 10. He later studied Japanese culture and language in the US, then went back to Japan where he has lived most of the time since (more than 30 years altogether).
He originally wrote Lost Japan in Japanese and was the first foreigner to be awarded a prestigious literary prize in Japan. He bought a traditional thatched-roof house in Shikoku that he restores himself (with some friends and villagers). Kerr is also an (Asian) art collector and a Kabuki conoisseur.
In Dogs and Demons, he makes a point in examining everything that has gone wrong with Japan, from corrupted bureaucracy to rigid education, to ecological destruction and sterilization of the Japanese culture.
I believe it's a must-read for any one interested in Japanese politics, economic problems, society and mentality in general. It's both enlightening and shocking.
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