A TOUCH OF SLEEVE – Hisashi’s Story
Susan Bell – Longacre Press - $39.99
Here is what Martin Stewart had to say on his blog (http://marttherev.blogspot.com/) about this recent title from Dunedin’s Longacre Press
Hisashi is Japanese and has done what Japanese men don't do - he has recounted to Susan his experience of life in Japan during World War II, the defeat and occupation. Culturally he has broken a kind of taboo - and according to a proverb he relates, been the frog who opens his mouth so wide that the contents of his insides can be seen...
The insight into Japanese life that comes from this opening his mouth widely is profound. I read some of the early draft chapters (that have since been radically revised as the book took its current shape) and the account of the fire bombing of Tokyo in particular was both harrowing and astonishing.
Until now, little has been known of the Japanese side of the war experience.
Susan with Hisashi's help has opened the window for us to look in - it promises to be a break-through book and I wish Susan well!
It is available around the country for $39.95 - I hope people get the opportunity to read it.
This is a remarkable story of upheaval, struggle and survival told beautifully by Susan Bell who met Hisashi (now in his 80’s) when he emigrated to New Zealand with his sister in 1991. Bell maps the history of Japan along with that of Hisashi’s ancestors, both his samurai and priestly lineage.
It will hold special appeal to those many New Zealanders who have a keen interest in matters Japanese.
Susan Bell – Longacre Press - $39.99
Here is what Martin Stewart had to say on his blog (http://marttherev.blogspot.com/) about this recent title from Dunedin’s Longacre Press
Hisashi is Japanese and has done what Japanese men don't do - he has recounted to Susan his experience of life in Japan during World War II, the defeat and occupation. Culturally he has broken a kind of taboo - and according to a proverb he relates, been the frog who opens his mouth so wide that the contents of his insides can be seen...
The insight into Japanese life that comes from this opening his mouth widely is profound. I read some of the early draft chapters (that have since been radically revised as the book took its current shape) and the account of the fire bombing of Tokyo in particular was both harrowing and astonishing.
Until now, little has been known of the Japanese side of the war experience.
Susan with Hisashi's help has opened the window for us to look in - it promises to be a break-through book and I wish Susan well!
It is available around the country for $39.95 - I hope people get the opportunity to read it.
This is a remarkable story of upheaval, struggle and survival told beautifully by Susan Bell who met Hisashi (now in his 80’s) when he emigrated to New Zealand with his sister in 1991. Bell maps the history of Japan along with that of Hisashi’s ancestors, both his samurai and priestly lineage.
It will hold special appeal to those many New Zealanders who have a keen interest in matters Japanese.
And from Jeff Grigor at Chapter & Verses, Timaru, his review from his monthly newsletter:
A Touch of Sleeve. Hisashi’s Story by Susan Bell $39:99 Biography.
Perhaps once a year I read a book, which is so outstanding and so different that it takes my breath away. This is one of those books.
The author Susan Bell met Hisashi and his sister Yayoi after they immigrated to New Zealand in 1989.His had been a turbulent life shaped by the course of history in his homeland.
She became a close friend and learned how one man caught up in the course of history was not only influenced by tradition and family but by events unfolding on a daily basis.
Hisashi can trace his ancestry back to his samurai ancestor Sakuzaemon who settled in Edo [modern day Tokyo] in 1620.Through his and his descendant’s stories Susan Bell maps the history of Japan through to modern times and the birth of his grandfather Jitsuzen who became a Shinto priest.
Hisashi was born in 1920 and with his traditional childhood and elite education he had a future full of promise. But this was dramatically changed by the militarism that permeated Japanese society in the 1920s and the many wars that followed.
Through Hisashi’s eyes we can view these events including the bombing of Pearl Harbour, the carpet-bombing of Tokyo and the subsequent hardships that followed after the war during the American occupation and the subsequent rebuilding.
This is a remarkable and wonderfully written story that gave me a new insight into Japan and its turbulent 20th century.
Very Highly Recommended
Perhaps once a year I read a book, which is so outstanding and so different that it takes my breath away. This is one of those books.
The author Susan Bell met Hisashi and his sister Yayoi after they immigrated to New Zealand in 1989.His had been a turbulent life shaped by the course of history in his homeland.
She became a close friend and learned how one man caught up in the course of history was not only influenced by tradition and family but by events unfolding on a daily basis.
Hisashi can trace his ancestry back to his samurai ancestor Sakuzaemon who settled in Edo [modern day Tokyo] in 1620.Through his and his descendant’s stories Susan Bell maps the history of Japan through to modern times and the birth of his grandfather Jitsuzen who became a Shinto priest.
Hisashi was born in 1920 and with his traditional childhood and elite education he had a future full of promise. But this was dramatically changed by the militarism that permeated Japanese society in the 1920s and the many wars that followed.
Through Hisashi’s eyes we can view these events including the bombing of Pearl Harbour, the carpet-bombing of Tokyo and the subsequent hardships that followed after the war during the American occupation and the subsequent rebuilding.
This is a remarkable and wonderfully written story that gave me a new insight into Japan and its turbulent 20th century.
Very Highly Recommended
1 comment:
Yes, a wonderful and enlightening book. Beautifully told it draws back a curtain on Japan that is largely hidden to outside eyes. The story of Hisashi encapsulates the story of 20th century Japan though the eyes and experiences of one man.
What a pleasure it was and how much this book offers the interested or even the casual reader.
Wonderful.
Geoff Prickett
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