The last country Book

The book has a powerful message, and it did open up many areas of Japanese history and culture that I had no idea existed - the burakumin are a striking example of this. Each of the people documented have compelling stories to tell, and fascinating backgrounds. It was very interesting to read this after having gone to Japan - in my travels, I saw no mention of anything in the book (apart from my visit to the Hiroshima Peace Museum), which goes to show how little you end up seeing on the surface.

However, I felt like the book and its authors were trying to beat the message into me sometimes, and certain parts felt like sermons. The writing style also bothered me somewhat, similar to the way that the writing style of Suzuki's The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering Our Place in Nature bothered me, and I didn't end up finishing that book.