Tag Archives: Japan

Yamamoto

Posted on December 3, 2015 by smellincoffee

Yamamoto: The Man Who Planned Pearl Harbor© 1990 Edwin Hoyt271 pages Isoroku Yamamoto was the indispensable man of the Japanese navy,  the author of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor and an object of such interest to the United States … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

December 6

Posted on December 3, 2015 by smellincoffee

December 6© 2002 Martin Cruz Smith400 pages Between his girlfriend and a samurai intent on revenge, Harry Niles isn’t sure who will try to kill him first.  Raised in Japan to American parents, Harry is a misfit who trouble would … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

This week: yep, still at war

Posted on November 28, 2015 by smellincoffee

I don’t know how most people spend Thanksgiving, but after a day with family eating sweet potatoes and admiring chickens and a late-fall collard garden, I’ve been reading nonstop about World War 2.  I’m moving closer to the end of … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Rape of Nanking

Posted on November 27, 2015 by smellincoffee

The Rape of Nanking© 1997 Iris Chang290 pages Long before bombs fell on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese were at war in China.  ‘War’ is not quite the word to describe  the aftermath of their invasion of Nanking, however.  There the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet

Posted on April 13, 2013 by smellincoffee

Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet352 pages© 2008 Michael T. Klare For much of the 20th century, a handful of industrialized countries enjoyed access to a seemingly infinite supply of oil. But a century of economic progress has seen global demand for … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, World Affairs | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Straphanger

Posted on April 6, 2013 by smellincoffee

Straphanger: Saving Our Cities and Ourselves from the Automobile336 pages© 2012 Taras Grescoe The cheap energy era is over, unless someone invents a Star Trek replicator that can magick barrels of oil into existence. Cities across the world are working … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The History of Japan

Posted on March 3, 2011 by smellincoffee

The History of Japan© 1918, 1947 Kenneth Scott Latourette282 pages ““Under a Wave off Kanagawa”, Katsushika Hokusai In Fall 2009 I took a class in Japanese history and enjoyed it tremendously, but given that it’s been well over a year, I figure I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Imperial Cruise

Posted on October 26, 2010 by smellincoffee

The Imperial Cruise: A Secret History of Empire and War© 2009 James Bradley387 pages They may be sovereign countries, but you folks at home forget That they all want what we’ve got, but they don’t know it yet. (Billy Bragg, … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Our Oriental Heritage

Posted on September 3, 2010 by smellincoffee

The Story of Civilization: Our Oriental Heritage © 1935 Will Durant 1048 pages “Civilization is social order promoting cultural creation.”  (Opening sentence.) Our Oriental Heritage is the introductory volume of a greater work, an eleven-book set covering prehistory to the last days of Napoleon. Judging … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Kokoro

Posted on October 7, 2009 by smellincoffee

Kokoro© 1957 Natsume Soseki248 pages A favorite history professor of mine typically assigns novels as part of his required reading, and for his Modern Japanese History course, I read a novel set in the last years of the Meiji period. … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, Reviews | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment