Jan/Feb 2025 Non-fiction nominations for group or buddy read and some questions

[Jack]

We have multiple requests for a more formalized non-fiction group read. The forum members have set up non-fiction reads in the past.

1) A non-fiction read and the follow on discussions may take more than 1 month so is a two month period acceptable?
2) We intent to set up a poll once the members have narrowed down choices. Is that acceptable?

We should nominate non-fiction books that are in-print and not too expensive. I suggest we start with a more narrow subject as opposed to a big scale book.

Please nominate your suggestions to this thread. Pick a book you haven’t read. It should be available, at least, in UK and US. I will also check to see if there are translations outside of English since we have forum members from all over the world. Also, We would. Appreciate any comments on how we could improve a non-fiction process and group read.

Thank you,
Your mods

[Carola]

My nominations:
Confessions of a Yakuza: A Life in Japan's Underworld
Prisoners from Nambu: Reality and Make-Believe in 17th-Century Japanese Diplomacy

As far as I can tell, both books are available. The first one is cheaper and looks easier to obtain though.

[Jack]

The Only Woman in the Room: A Memoir of Japan, Human Rights, and the Arts by Beate Sirota Gordon. Amazon US used is 8$ including shipping, ebook is 10$ , I didn’t check UK prices yet. It was available at the the three e-libraries I checked. Beate Sirota wrote the women’s right section of Japan’s post war constitution.

The Widow, The Priest and The Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island by Amy Chavez. This is on heavy discount now. I bought a hardback copy for 4$ (free shipping) while I was looking. I have access to a e-copy but the price was great. It is in e-libraries. Amy Chavez is the host of Asia Books in Print.

This are from my j-nf-tbr shelf

[Bill]

I put a few books here that I already own (let me know if you can't see this): https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Prisoners from Nambu sounds interesting. And Confessions of a Yakuza is a great book; I read it a few years ago.

[Jack]

Bill wrote: "I put a few books here that I already own (let me know if you can't see this): https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Prisoners from Nambu sounds interest..."

yes, I can read your list.
(without regard for cost: 1) Takarazauka, 2) Modern Japanese Diaries, 3) autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa, 4) then everything else)

[Jack]

Carola wrote: "My nominations:
Confessions of a Yakuza: A Life in Japan's Underworld
Prisoners from Nambu: Reality and Make-Believe in 17th-Century Japanese Diplomacy

As far as I can..."
for me: 1) Prisoners, 2) Confessions

[Jack]

I had an idea about mitigating the cost of non-fiction Japan studies books. University of Michigan has a number of free open access Japanese NF books. This is funded by the US endowment for the humanities. One of the books i would like to read is Yosano Akiko and The Tale of Genji by G.G. Rowley, Second edition
Please look at the collection and see if there are anything of interest for a group read, r/Jack

https://www.fulcrum.org/michigan?f%5B...

[Bill]

I would definitely read Daily Life and Demographics in Ancient Japan !

I've read his earlier books on population and was greatly impressed by his Medieval volume written just a few years prior to this Ancient volume.

[Jack]

I think we should leave the nominations open until Tuesday then pick something to start on.

[Bill]

In the interest of getting wider participation, perhaps a group-wide message asking for nominations would help?

[Jack]

Ok, will do a group wide notification. Thanks for the suggestion Bill.
Done.

[Tanzey]

How about Lost Japan by Alex Kerr. This is a really interesting, readable and beautiful book, I have already read it though (twice)

[Alessandra]

Hi!!

My proposal is

Osamu Dazai
No Longer Human

Portraying himself as a failure, the protagonist of Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human narrates a seemingly normal life even while he feels himself incapable of understanding human beings. His attempts to reconcile himself to the world around him begin in early childhood, continue through high school, where he becomes a “clown” to mask his alienation, and eventually lead to a failed suicide attempt as an adult. Without sentimentality, he records the casual cruelties of life and its fleeting moments of human connection and tenderness.

[eny]

Hi :)

My nomination is: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami.

A memoir that talks about his interest and participation in long-distance running. Less than 200 pages and available both as paperback and audiobook from amazon!

[Ana]

Wow, so many interesting options... I would go with most of these, so I will wait to nominate next time and vote among these.
Thank you!

[Jack]

eny wrote: "Hi :)

My nomination is: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami.

A memoir that talks about his interest and participation in long-distance running. Less than 200 pages and..."

This is a very interesting nomination since we have a group read of Murakami coming up. Other non-fiction by Murakami also include: Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche, Novelist as a Vocation, Murakami T: The T-Shirts I Love.
They all are readily available at elibraries in book and audiobook.

Are there others?

[Carol]

I’d enjoy Lost Japan. Will check out whatever wins .

A couple of other proposals:

Cha-No-Yu: Japanese Tea Ceremony by A.L. Sadler

Emergent Tokyo: Designing the Spontaneous City by Jorge Almazán. Urban design. USD $20 or so. (I bought it last month).

Japan Prepares for Total War: The Search for Economic Security, 1919-1941 by Michael A. Barnhart.

[Jack]

Alessandra wrote: "Hi!!

My proposal is

Osamu Dazai
No Longer Human

Portraying himself as a failure, the protagonist of Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human narrates a seemingly normal life even while he feels himself inc..."

Although No Longer Human might be considered semi-autobiographical, it might be better described as I-novel fiction. There are two translations of the novel and a currently released manga version by Tuttle Publishing.

You can nominate it for the next fiction nominations, feb/march group reads, when that come up if you like.

[Jack]

I have created a poll from the nominations above. I will leave the poll up for 2 weeks to give time for members to review the nominations.
Please leave any comments on how the non-fiction nomination and poll process could be improved for this and the future.
r/Jack

[Jack]

There is a suggestion for adding ranked choice for the non-fiction poll. So please add. Those in the comments on the poll. (Thanks for the suggestion!)

[Carola]

For those who are on mobile, here's a link to the poll:
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/3...

[[deleted user]]

eny wrote: "Hi :)

My nomination is: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami.

A memoir that talks about his interest and participation in long-distance running. Less than 200 pages and..."

Years ago I sure enjoyed that one and would be glad to read it again.

[Jovana]

Bill wrote: "I put a few books here that I already own (let me know if you can't see this): https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Prisoners from Nambu sounds interest..."

You have an interesting list and I would gladly read almost everything, in particular Edo Culture: Daily Life and Diversions in Urban Japan, 1600-1868 and The Great Wave: Gilded Age Misfits, Japanese Eccentrics, and the Opening of Old Japan.

I would also nominate this book: Bushido: The Soul of Japan.

[Jack]

I put the poll up on 3 Dec. We can roll other books into the next NF nominations should this one be successful/useful for forum members. -j

[Jack]

The votes are in and Confessions of a Yakuza: A Life in Japan's Underworld by Junichi Saga, eng trs by John Bester, was the top nonfiction selection. Therefore, it will be the Jan-Feb 2025 Nonfiction group read.

Also, the January in Japan 2025 literary event is coming up and will be supported by multiple literary sites. This will be the 18th year of the challenge. Nonfiction counts for the event. More to come on that.

I will add the NF selection to our book shelf, a thread in the book club folder, and a notification again at the start of January. Thanks to everyone that participated in the NF nominations and voting.