Being Here: A Western Journalists View of Japan
by Adrian Waller
Category: Travel

Waller began writing his brilliant columns in Japan Times Weekly in 1990. They are sometimes humorous, oftentimes irreverent, but always a joy to read. This book comprises a collection of short articles and observations from his columns by a sensitive, observant man who, with his family, makes the cultural leap from the West to Japan. His adventures are hilarious, frustrating, and touching. He set out to record his life in Japan, as a family man, with a mixture of humor and irony, always honestly and objectively. His observations on bus. and gov't., and the burrs and prickles in an otherwise homogeneous soc., are right on target. Brilliant piece on the Sanya dist. of Tokyo -- home Japan's hidden dropouts.