A Beginner's Guide to Japan
Observations and Provocations
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group · Print & ebook · June 2, 2020
“Arguably the greatest living travel writer” (Outside magazine), Pico Iyer has called Japan home for more than three decades.
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- Who it’s for
- Japan through brief, playful observations that keep an old familiarity intriguingly unfinished.
- Themes
- Japanese culture, Travel and observation
- Genres
- Japan Travel, Travel Writing, Asian Culture & Society
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Start with this bookAbout this book
“Arguably the greatest living travel writer” (Outside magazine), Pico Iyer has called Japan home for more than three decades. But, as he is the first to admit, the country remains an enigma even to its long-term residents. In A Beginner’s Guide to Japan, Iyer draws on his years of experience—his travels, conversations, readings, and reflections—to craft a playful and profound book of surprising, brief, incisive glimpses into Japanese culture.
Continue reading
He recounts his adventures and observations as he travels from a meditation hall to a love hotel, from West Point to Kyoto Station, and from dinner with Meryl Streep to an ill-fated call to the Apple service center in a series of provocations guaranteed to pique the interest and curiosity of those who don’t know Japan—and to remind those who do of its myriad fascinations.
Curious Glimpses
Japan through brief, playful observations that keep an old familiarity intriguingly unfinished.
Come here for
- A long-term resident’s curious, well-traveled perspective
- Unexpected cultural juxtapositions, from meditation halls to Kyoto Station
Expect
- Brief, incisive glimpses rather than a conventional travel guide
- Playful provocations that leave room for Japan’s enigma
Where it sits
| Japan Travel | 76% |
|---|---|
| Travel Writing | 60% |
| Asian Culture & Society | 42% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Japanese History
- 21st-Century History
- Japan Travel
- Authors
- Pico Iyer
- Publisher
- Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
- Published
- June 2, 2020
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Japanese culture · Travel and observation
- Reading lane
- Japanese History