Our Land Was A Forest: An Ainu Memoir (Transitions--Asia & the Pacific)
Through this memoir of a contemporary Ainu, we see the story of his people, the aboriginal inhabitants of Japan's Hokkaido island, during the period of cultural change following World War II. Kayano saves this from being another sorrowful story of a culture destroyed by presenting his role in efforts to preserve Ainu language, customs, and artifacts. Since there are few books on the Ainu, this is a valuable enthnographic record of a traditional culture banging up against modern life. This title in the "Transitions: Asia & the Pacific" series is recommended for academic anthropology collections.Stella I. Wheat, Univ. of Southern Mississippi Lib., HattiesburgCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.