Inventing Japan: 1853 - 1964
Ian Buruma
194pp
This is first and foremost and maybe above all else, a small book.
I was struck by two things mainly as I quickly polished off this helpful work by Ian Buruma: First, that his writing is very pleasant and almost always to the point and missing any pomposity that might ruin such a work (which is obviously meant as an overview for beginners), and second, at how big and small history can be.
Last year I spent a good amount of time reading Shiba Ryotaro's work, and as I finished the first chapter of about 20 pages here, I was stuck that Shiba had, in my quick estimation, possibly written for publication, 2000 or more pages about the same things.
While Shiba dug in deep and made a story a story of everything, Buruma is glancing over things. Both have there place on the bookshelf, and I must admit, while Shiba's work holds great importance, sometimes I need a bit of what Buruma has given us, just to inspire me to pick up a book (which, if you look at the length of time since my last review, it might be a hint of both writer's block of sorts, but more so, a lack of inspiration to just sit down and pick up a book).
So, with all that out of the way, it's time to examine Buruma's book for what it is, that being a short snapshot of about one hundred and ten years of a country being built, falling (in many many ways) and beginning to come back.
Again, if you are not very acquainted with this history, this book can act as a very suitable and quick entry into understanding what happened after Japan was forcefully made to pry open the gates to their country.
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| The author himself |
Buruma shows off his ability to write concisely, interestingly, sometimes forebodingly, and with just enough info to not be too little. The goal here is not to expand on everything, but to tell the simple story of how Japan changed, then changed, then changed again... and with hints of it becoming the ever unchanging country it can sometimes feel like today.
Buruma also tackles the issues that can at times be controversial within Japan. He shows no fear of suggesting that the emperor may have gotten off very easy, that Manchuria is something shameful, not only to occur, but to deny, and that organized rape occurred. He doesn't go further, never gets on a soapbox, but he doesn't back away from these issues that are often easier to ignore when living in Tokyo.
If there was any detractor from this book, it was the amount of names that started to pop up especially after the war. It's hard to complain that a history book talked about important people, but one of this size might have been even more graspable if it has chosen to speak a bit more about political groups rather than each person that came and went within these groups. Maybe a longer book is where such minutia can be brought up.
However, that is a small part at the end of a very lovely little chunk of history that has been presented to us all in a well written, smooth flowing, tight little package.
Recommended for anyone with an interest in the times, who isn't interested in anything thicker.
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