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A review by noelrk
The Great Wave: Gilded Age Misfits, Japanese Eccentrics, and the Opening of Old Japan by Christopher Benfey
informative
fast-paced
2.0
Starts off personal and detail-oriented, but becomes broader and more padded as it progresses; much of the "Messages from Mars" chapter, for instance, is devoted to various dramas with the Dickinson family to barely connected pointed. By the end, the connections Benfey draws are stretched and bordering on the general.
Despite its title, there aren't very many "Japanese eccentrics" chronicled, focusing instead on the earliest American weeabos, almost all from New England, and almost all of those from Boston. Perhaps fittingly, there is also little pushback or contextualizing from Benfey when quoting his subjects. The discussion of the Ainu is a grand example, as Benfey just lets stand plenty of unthoughtful quotes.
Despite its title, there aren't very many "Japanese eccentrics" chronicled, focusing instead on the earliest American weeabos, almost all from New England, and almost all of those from Boston. Perhaps fittingly, there is also little pushback or contextualizing from Benfey when quoting his subjects. The discussion of the Ainu is a grand example, as Benfey just lets stand plenty of unthoughtful quotes.