Looking for the Lost: Journeys Through a Vanishing Japan (Kodansha Globe)
Booth's The Roads to Sata (Weatherhill, 1986), which recounts his impressions and experiences during a 2000-mile walking tour of Japan, is considered a classic of its genre. In the present work, Booth, who died in 1992, offers a sequel. The book is divided into three parts, each involving a journey connected to a famous person or event in Japanese history. The first, entitled "Tsugaru," follows the path taken by the Japanese novelist, Osamu Dazai (1909-48), in a work by the same title; the second, "Saigo's Last March," follows the retreat of the tragic leader of the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion, Saigo Takamori, to his death in his home city of Kagoshima; and the third part, "Looking for the Lost," explores the setting of the 12th-century Japanese classic, The Tale of the Heike. All three episodes contain Booth's customary blend of rich historical and cultural background with fascinating and often humorous anecdotal experience. Recommended for all libraries with an interest in Japan and especially for those owning Booth's earlier work.?Scott Wright, Univ. of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minn.Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.