Japan - Further Reading

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Japan

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For younger readers

Behnke, Alison. Japan in Pictures. Lerner, 2002. For readers in grades 6 to 10.

Bornoff, Nicholas. Japan. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1997. A comparison of urban and rural life, for readers in grades 4 to 7.

Green, Jen. Japan. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 2000. For readers in grades 4 to 8.

Hamanaka, Sheila, and Ayano Ohmi. In Search of the Spirit: The Living National Treasures of Japan. Morrow, 1999. For readers in grades 4 to 6.

Kallen, Stuart A. Life in Tokyo. Lucent, 2001. For readers in grades 6 to 10.

Pilbeam, Mavis. Japan Under the Shoguns: 1185-1868. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1999. For young adult readers.

Poisson, Barbara Aoki. The Ainu of Japan. Lerner, 2002. For readers in grades 4 to 7.

Ross, Stewart. Rise of Japan and the Pacific Rim. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1995. For middle school and high school readers.

Schomp, Viginia. Japan in the Days of the Samurai. Benchmark, 2001. For readers in grades 6 to 10.

Shelley, Rex, Teo Chuu Yong, and Russell Mok. Japan. 2nd ed. Benchmark, 2001. In the Cultures of the World Series, for readers in grades 4 to 8.

Whyte, Harlinah. Japan. Gareth Stevens, 1998. For readers in grades 4 to 8.

Japanese art and architecture

Addiss, Stephen. The Art of Zen: Paintings and Calligraphy by Japanese Monks, 1600-1925. Abrams, 1989. An in-depth study of Buddhist art traditions.

Elisseeff, Danielle, and Vadime Elisseeff. Art of Japan. Abrams, 1985, 1994. Comprehensive survey.

Hiesinger, Kathryn B., and Felice Fischer. Japanese Design: A Survey Since 1950. Abrams, 1994. Wide coverage of contemporary design in Japan.

Hillier, Jack. Japanese Colour Prints. Phaidon, 1966, 1993. Well-illustrated selection of prints.

Hisamatsu, Shin'ichi. Zen and the Fine Arts. Kodansha, 1971, 1982. History, aesthetics, and illustrations of Japanese Zen Buddhism in architecture, calligraphy, painting, homes, and theater.

Kuck, Loraine. The World of the Japanese Garden: From Chinese Origins to Modern Landscape Art. Weatherhill, Tuttle, 1968. 1980. Beauty and symbolism of traditional Japanese garden.

Lee, Sherman E. The Genius of Japanese Design. Kodansha, 1981. Resource with 800 plates of predominant motifs from 15 centuries; also family crests.

Mason, Penelope E. History of Japanese Art. Abrams, 1993. Concise introduction.

Murase, Miyeko. Masterpieces of Japanese Screen Painting: The American Collections. Braziller, 1990.

Nishi, Kazuo, and Kazuo Hozumi. Trans. H. Mack Horton. What Is Japanese Architecture? Kodansha, 1996. Excellent introduction to Japanese architecture.

Paine, Robert T., and Alexander C. Soper. Art and Architecture of Japan. Penguin, 1992. Scholarly history focuses on distinctive characteristics.

Pearson, Richard J., and Takashi Doi. Ancient Japan. Braziller, 1992. Catalog of a large exhibition on the ancient art of Japan.

Roberts, Laurance P. A Dictionary of Japanese Artists: Painting, Sculpture, Ceramics, Prints, Lacquer. Weatherhill, 1976, 1991. Comprehensive reference includes terminology, bibliography, organizations.

Shimizu, Yoshiaki, ed. Japan: The Shaping of Daimyo Culture, 1185-1868. Braziller, 1988. Catalog of an exhibition held at the National Gallery of Art.

Ueda, Atsushi. The Inner Harmony of the Japanese House. Kodansha, 1990. Collection of essays covering all aspects of domestic architecture.

Yoshida, Mitsukuni, and others. Japan Style. Kodansha, 1990. Essays with examples of Japanese aesthetics.

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Japanese culture and society

Beasley, William G. The Rise of Modern Japan: Political, Economic, and Social Change Since 1850. St. Martin's, 1995. An excellent one-volume history of Japan from the rise of the Tokugawa to the 1990s.

Benedict, Ruth. The Chrysanthemum and the Sword. Houghton Mifflin, 1946, 1989. A classic exploration of Japanese society from the 7th century to the mid-20th century.

Booth, Alan. Looking for the Lost: Journeys Through a Vanishing Japan. Kodansha, 1996. The author retraces three journeys originally made by literary and military figures, providing historical and cultural insights into Japan. Also by this author, The Roads to Sata: A 2000-Mile Walk Through Japan (Viking, 1986).

Buckley, Roger. Japan Today. Cambridge University Press, 1998. Excellent description of Japanese society.

DeMente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia. Passport, 1995. Concise yet comprehensive resource on Japanese people and culture. Many entries provide Japanese equivalents and pronunciation with the English text.

Earhart, H. Byron. Religions of Japan: Many Traditions Within One Sacred Way. Harper & Row, Reprint, Waveland, 1984. 1998. Introduction to the different traditions and the role of religion in Japanese life.

Gibney, Frank. Japan: The Fragile Superpower. Charles E. Tuttle, 1996. Politics and foreign policy in modern Japan.

Hall, John W., gen. ed. The Cambridge History of Japan. Cambridge University Press, 1988-1993. The standard multivolume scholarly history of Japan.

Horsley, William, and Roger Buckley. Nippon: New Superpower: Japan Since 1945. BBC Books, 1992. Companion to the BBC television documentary provides a complete discussion of postwar Japan.

Jansen, Marius B. Japan and Its World: Two Centuries of Change. Princeton University Press, 1980, 1996. Emphasizes how the Japanese view themselves and the Western world.

Reischauer, Edwin O. The Japanese Today. Harvard University Press, 1987. One of the best one-volume introductions to Japan.

Reischauer, Haru Matsukata. Samurai and Silk: A Japanese and American Heritage. Belknap, 1986. The author's grandfathers exemplify upper-class life in modern Japan.

Smith, Patrick L. Japan: A Reinterpretation. Pantheon, 1997. This portrait of modern Japan covers history, samurai culture, education, and political and social issues.

Sugimoto, Yoshio. An Introduction to Japanese Society. Cambridge University Press, 1997. Introduction to many aspects of Japan, including class, work and labor, education, family, government, and popular culture.

Tsunoda, Ryusaku; William Theodore de Bary; and Donald Keene, comps. Sources of the Japanese Tradition. Columbia University Press, 1958, 1969. Translations from important works of literature, history, philosophy, religion, and statecraft.

White, Merry. The Material Child: Coming of Age in Japan and America. Free Press, 1994. Cross-cultural study discussing the differences between Japanese and American teenagers.

Japanese history

Beasley, W. G. The Japanese Experience: A Short History of Japan. University of California Press, 1999, 2000. A distinguished expert's concise history of Japan from the 6th century to the present.

Bix, Herbert L. Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan. HarperCollins, 2000, 2001. Vivid portrait of Japan's wartime emperor.

Buruma, Ian. Inventing Japan, 1853-1964. Modern Library, 2003. A concise history of modern Japan.

Dower, John W. Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II. Norton, 1999, 2000. Analysis of postwar Japan; winner of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award.

Jansen, Marius B. The Making of Modern Japan. Harvard University Press, 2000. Absorbing, monumental history of Japan over the last 400 years.

McClain, James L. Japan: A Modern History. Norton, 2001. Lively and comprehensive treatment of Japan's history from the 17th century to the present.

Reischauer, Edwin O. Japan: The Story of a Nation. 4th ed. McGraw Hill, 1990. One of the best introductions to Japanese history and culture.

Japanese literature

Kato, Shuichi. Trans. David Chibbett (vol. 1) and Don Sanderson (vols. 2, 3). A History of Japanese Literature. Macmillan, 1979-1983. Discusses social context from the 7th century to the 1980s.

Keene, Donald. Dawn to the West: Japanese Literature in the Modern Era. Holt, Reprint, Columbia University Press, 1984. 1998. Covers the period from 1867 to 1970. Volume 1 covers nonfiction, volume 2 deals with poetry, drama, and criticism.

Keene, Donald. Seeds in the Heart: Japanese Literature from Earliest Times to the Late Sixteenth Century. Holt, 1993, Reprint, Columbia University Press, 1999. Last volume of Keene's comprehensive survey of Japanese literature.

Keene, Donald. Japanese Literature of the Pre-Modern Era, 1600-1867. Holt, 1976, Reprint, Columbia University Press, 1999. Part of Keene's survey of Japanese literature.

Rimer, J. Thomas. A Reader's Guide to Japanese Literature. Kodansha, 1999. Provides a good introduction for all readers.

Ueda, Makoto, ed. and trans. Modern Japanese Tanka: An Anthology. Columbia University Press, 1996. A comprehensive collection of the early poetry form that inspired haiku and renga.

Japanese music

Crump, J. I., and William P. Malm, eds. Chinese and Japanese Music-Dramas. Michigan, 1975. Emphasis is on the characteristics of the Japanese nō drama.

Kishibe, Shigeo. The Traditional Music of Japan. Japan Foundation, 1982.

Malm, William P. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Tuttle, 1959, 1968. Authoritative, for layperson and musicologist; fine illustrations.

Malm, William P. Six Hidden Views of Japanese Music. University of California Press, 1986. Rituals, principles, compositions, performances; covers nō, nagauta, and matsuri genres.

Piggott, Francis. The Music and Musical Instruments of Japan. Da Capo, 1971. Includes a section on the Japanese scale; first published 1893.

Tanabe, Hisao. Japanese Music. Society for International Cultural Relations, 1960. Revision of a paper published in 1929.

Shinto

Hartz, Paula. Shinto. Facts on File, 1997. Discusses the history of the Shinto religion in Japan, describing its origins, basic beliefs, rituals, and place in Japanese society; for middle school and high school readers.

Kato, Genichi. Trans. Shoyu Hanayama. A Historical Study of the Religious Development of Shinto. Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Reprint, Greenwood, 1973. 1988. Comprehensive history of Shinto thought.

Muraoka, Tsunetsugu. Trans. James T. Araki. Studies in Shinto Thought. Greenwood, 1988. Eight essays by one of Japan's most renowned thinkers on the essence of Shinto thought.

Nelson, John K. A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine. University of Washington Press, 1996. Modern Shinto in Japan.

Picken, Stuart D. B. Essentials of Shinto. Greenwood, 1994. Guide to understanding Shinto, its history, and its place in Japanese society.

Ross, Floyd H. Shinto, the Way of Japan. Greenwood, 1983. Conveys the strength of Shinto and the human emotions tied to it.

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