Peasants, Rebels, and Outcastes The Underside of Modern Japan

Using diaries, memoirs, fiction, trial testimony, personal recollections, and eyewitness accounts, Mikiso Hane weaves a fascinating tale of what it was like to be an ordinary Japanese during this last century of startling economic growth. Rescuing vivid, often wrenching accounts of peasants, miners, textile workers, rebels, and prostitutes, he forces us to see Japan's 'modern century' (from the beginnings of contact with the West to defeat in World War II) through fresh eyes. In doing so, he presents a formidable challenge to the success story of Japan's 'economic miracle.'