Major topics on China and Japan Book

The West, and in particular, the United States, goes through periods of fascination and sometimes, fear, of all things Eastern. The fascination is well deserved, considering the rich and varied philosophical and cultural past of many Eastern cultures (I use Eastern in the loosest sense, that is, to mean non-European, and mostly Southeast and Central East Asian nations), more then beneficial. The 1980s was another one of these cycles of interest in the East, mostly represented in the rising economic power of Japan. Yet, outside The Book of Five Rings, translators turned to China for ancient strategic advice. Several editions of Sun Tzu's seminal work The Art of War circulated in airport bookstores throughout the United States, and even influenced a major motion picture. Lure the Tiger Out of the Mountains came at the end of that cycle, so garnered less attentions (and with a slightly more tortured title, was less marketable as a movie headline). The subject matter centers around China's early history, during the Warring State's period, an almost legendary time of constant conflict amongst a large retinue of heroic and villainous characters that seem fictional. Mixed in with the stories of the past are contemporary tales of conflict and competition between modern companies, tycoons, and politicians. The overall effect tends ends up muddled and dry. Often, I was confused as to what the heck was going on half the time. Part of my confusion was caused by actual ignorance of Chinese history, the other part was an almost dead pan recount of what I believed to be very dramatic events. My conclusion is that while the book may have some value to a student of strategy and conflict, but the writing will confound most readers and leave them scratching their heads. Better to read the more minimalist Sun Tzu or Machiavelli, then the tortured 38 Stratagems.