Japan The Precarious Future

"A must-read for anyone interested in Japans recent past and possible future. The authors manage to be both balanced and hard hitting in their analyses. The overall tone is one of guarded pessimismwith a dash of guarded optimism. Such a stance toward Japans future both at home and in the region and world is well justified." - Andrew Gordon,author of Fabricating Consumers: The Sewing Machine in Modern Japan "By bringing together cutting edge interdisciplinary scholarship produced by an international group of researchers, this book provides an illuminating window into how the worlds third largest economy and nation with an unresolved colonial past is trying to come to terms with its fluid present and searching for ways to deal with its uncertain future." - Sayuri Guthrie Shimzu,author of Transpacific Field of Dreams "This book, inspired by the ordinary people who survived the catastrophic 3/11 disaster in the Tohoku region, is an excellent interdisciplinary collection of essays by leading scholars that offers an insightful and thought-provoking inquiry into the outlook for Japans near future. A major contribution to our understanding of the economic, political, social, international challenges that Japan faces today." - Takashi Yoshida,author of The Making of the "Rape of Nanking": History and Memory in Japan, China, and the US "This volume has value in now providing food for thought to reassess Japans lost decades as an alternative to a populist uprising." (Social Science Japan Journal) "The overall message that emerges is both hopeful and unsettling: Japans problems are far from insurmountable but big changes are needed, and time is running out." (The Japan Times) "As an invariably thoughtful overview...of issues facing recent and contemporary Japan,Japans Precarious Futureis superb. Indeed, I plan to use it as the required text for my upcoming course on Japanese politics. My Student always seem more concerned with the future than the past, and I look forward to sharing this remarkable volume with them." (Journal of Japanese Studies) "This collection of lucid essays by leading experts takes stock in Japans many problems" (Foreign Affairs)