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A review by booksnguitars
The Great Wave: Gilded Age Misfits, Japanese Eccentrics, and the Opening of Old Japan by Christopher Benfey
5.0
Terrific history about Japan opening to the West, and the notable figures from that West that helped it happen. Not only important for the modernization of the country, but also important due to these writers/artists/aesthetes recognition of the sophistication of Japanese art & culture, rather than the dismissive prevailing attitudes toward the nation in the 1800’s.
The author does a terrific job of bringing to life these big personalities, rather than as cardboard figures belonging to the “petrified nineteenth century.” And Henry Adams wondered in his final days, “Why did we live...was that all?” These were all real, passionate people that deserve to be remembered for more than their works.
Great book for anyone wanting an intimate examination of the world starting to become a smaller place in late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
The author does a terrific job of bringing to life these big personalities, rather than as cardboard figures belonging to the “petrified nineteenth century.” And Henry Adams wondered in his final days, “Why did we live...was that all?” These were all real, passionate people that deserve to be remembered for more than their works.
Great book for anyone wanting an intimate examination of the world starting to become a smaller place in late 1800’s and early 1900’s.