Search results for: Japan

Fun Facts Friday: Richard Harding Davis
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / April 19, 2013

Richard Harding Davis (18 April, 1864 – 11 April, 1916) wrote fiction as well as being a noted journalist and war correspondent. During his lifetime Mr. Davis was one of the most active and influential journalists in the country. Davis’ mother, Rebecca Harding Davis, was a prominent writer. During the 1890s Davis was already a well known writer, a reporter for The Sun and managing editor for Harper’s Weekly. Davis was the first American war correspondent to cover the Spanish-American War, the Second Boer War, and the First World War. Newspaper giant William Randolph Hearst commissioned Davis to cover the Cuban rebellion against Spain with illustrator Frederick Remington. Davis wrote to major stories that contributed greatly to the interest in the struggle of the Cubans. One was “The Death of Rodriguez” which described the execution of a young prisoner, the second about a strip search of a young woman. Hearst changed the second story, saying that the search has been done by male guard, as a result Davis resigned and never worked for Hearst again. During the Spanish-American War (1898) Davis was reporting from the U.S. Navy flagship New York. Reporting for Scribner’s Magazine, the New York Herald and the…

Fun Facts Friday: Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / March 1, 2013

Japanese writer Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (1 March 1892 – 24 July 1927) had a short life, but made a huge impact on his native Japan. He committed suicide at age 35 by overdosing on barbital (a drug used for sleeping). The Akutagawa, named after the author, is Japan’s top literary award. Ryūnosuke means “son of Dragon” because he was born on the day, month and year of the dragon. From an early age Akutagawa was interested in classic Chinese literature. Akutagawa’s First High School class of 1910 produces at least 5 prominent Japanese authors ( Kan Kikuchi, Kume Masao, Yamamoto Yūzō,Tsuchiya Bunmei and Akutagawa) Akutagawa is known as the “father of the Japanese short story.” Akutagawa’s first short story “Rashōmon” was published in the literary magazine Teikoku Bungaku (“Imperial Literature”) around 1915. Akutagwa also wrote haiku under the pen name (haigo) Gaki Famed Japanese author Haruki Murakami wrote the introduction to Rashomon and Seventeen Other Stories which was translated by Jay Rubin. Two of the stories Rubin successfully translated, Chugi” (“Loyalty”) and “Negi” (“Green Onions”) were considered impossible to translate by Akutagawa scholars. Akutagawa was suffering from hallucinations and fears that he had inherited his mother’s mental illness. Zohar – Man of la Book

Guest Review: So Sad to Fall in Battle: an Account of War by Tadamichi Kuribayashi
Guest Posts , Latest Posts , Non-Fiction / October 30, 2012

Few people in America knew who Tadamichi Kuribayashi was before Clint Eastwood’s heartrending film, Letters from Iwo Jima. They wouldn’t have known by name that Kuribayashi, ultimately, was the man responsible for one-third of the deaths in the Marine Corps in the Pacific theater of World War II. So Sad to Fall in Battle is available on Kindle, hardcover, and paperback. Letters from an unorthodox general Eastwood’s work (which is based on freelance author Kumiko Kakehashi’s book So Sad to Fall in Battle) makes clear that Kuribayashi was no ordinary soldier. Interviews with widows of long lost soldiers and the very letters and pictures that Kuribayashi penned to his dying day reveal a man unlike any American-held stereotype of a WWII-era Japanese. Far from the suicidal fanatics portrayed in Hollywood (who did, admittedly, exist, though in greater complexity than typically believed), Kuribayashi refused to allow his subordinates to execute banzai charges. Where many superiors in the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy were hyper-sensitive to class distinctions and made their disdain corporally known to all inferiors, Kuribayashi held the view that his men were not expendable. He ate the same rations as his men, drank the same water collected in rainstorms, and walked every inch…

Guest Review: The Enlightened Heart, ed. Stephen Mitchell
Guest Posts , Latest Posts / September 19, 2012

Life has been frightening and cataclysmic lately, so I needed some reading material that would reconnect me with a sense of the spiritual. I also haven’t had a lot of time to read, I’ve been writing so much. So the book I just finished was unlike my usual favorites: nonfiction books about history or colorful, literary adventure novels. I decided to pick up a book I’d had on my shelf for a long time, The Enlightened Heart: An Anthology of Sacred Poetry, edited by Stephen Mitchell. Buy this book in paper or electronic format This remarkable volume serves as a history of world religion, as well as a collection of beautiful poetry. In fact, we might not even have considered many of these works “poetry” the way we normally think of it. Many of the world’s great religious classics, (and indeed most highbrow literature before a few hundred years ago) were written in verse rather than prose, as the divinity they were meant to express can only be captured, even in part, by the beauty of a poetic treatment. In order, The Enlightened Heart contains selections from: the Upanishads, the Book of Psalms, the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita,…

Book Review: The Orchardist by Amanda Chopin
4 Stars , Fiction , Latest Posts / August 27, 2012

Article first published as Book Review: The Orchardist by Amanda Chopin on Blogcritics. About: The Orchardist by Amanda Chopin is a novel taking place in Washington State at the early part of the 20thCentury. This is Chopin’s first book and is a majestic debut, a new book which reads like an old friend. The pub­lisher is giv­ing away one copy of this book— use the Raf­fle­copter form at the end of the post to enter. 448 pages Publisher: Harper Language: English ISBN-10: 006218850X My rating for The Orchardist – 4 Buy this book in paper or electronic format Thoughts: The Orchardist by Amanda Chopin is a beautifully written and haunting novel, a mood not usually captured by first time authors. The prose is lyrical and the characters enchanting, even though they might not be likeable they grow on the reader and make one invest in their future. The reason I requested to be on the tour for this book is actually quite nostalgic. Many years ago, what seems like 100 years ago (and unfortunately, what seems like 100 lbs. as well) I walked along the Inca Trail in Bolivia(slightly less famous than its Peruvian counterpart which I walked several weeks later). After a few days we…

Fun Facts Friday: Dr. Fu-Manchu
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / August 24, 2012

1 ) The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu, the first book in the series, is actually a collection of short stories. The novel was originally called The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu but the title was changed when released in America. 2 ) Fu-Manchu’s goal is to restore the Chinese Empire to its former glory. Even though he uses some despicable and cruel methods, the book does show him as a benevolent man who uses compassion as well as ruthlessness. 3 ) When MGM adapted The Mask of Fu Manchu in 1932, the assembled group of Asian villains (Chinese, Persians, Indians, Arabs) stated that they must “kill the white men and take their women”. The statement prompted a group from Harvard to petition MGM to stop from making further films based on the novels. 4 ) Before the US entrance to World War II (around 1940), the State Department asked MGM to stop making future films starring Fu-Manch. This was because China was an ally against Japan. 5 ) Once the US entered World War II the books’ publisher, Doubleday, ceased publication of the series for the duration. 6 ) The author, Sax Rohmer, stated in his biography that “Of course,…

Tightwad Tuesday — Free or Affordable eBooks — Military History

Please note: The prices for the post are cur­rent at the time of the post, please pay atten­tion to make sure they haven’t changed before purchase. Authors: If you’d like your book to be fea­tured on Tight­wad Tues­days please email me. A Medical Emergency, Major-General ‘Ginger’ Burston and the Army Medical Service in World War II by Ian Howie-Willis Australian soldiers and their American Allies won the land war against Japan in the Pacific islands because they were healthier than their enemies. The troops’ fighting spirit, their armaments, their naval and air support and their generals were certainly key ingredients in the Allied victory. Without good health, however, these other factors would have been nullified. Malaria, the great scourge of armies throughout history, threatened the health of the Allies and the Japanese alike. The army that could beat malaria would also defeat its military foe because troops shivering, sweating and shaking with malarial fever cannot shoot straight, let alone fight. In World War II the Allies eventually beat the Japanese — a victory based, to a large part, on the success of the Australian Army Medical Service in defeating malaria. Their Japanese counterpart never won this battle. Major-General ‘Ginger’ Burston led…

Thoughts on: The Art of the Sale by Philip Delves Broughton
5 Stars , Latest Posts , Non-Fiction / April 24, 2012

About: The Art of the Sale by Philip Delves Broughton is a non-fiction book in which the author shares stories and theories about what makes a salesperson. Mr. Broughton believes that we are all salespeople and could use sales skills everyday of our lives. I’m in agreement. 304 pages Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The (April 12, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 1594203326 My rating for The Art of the Sale – 5 Buy this book in paper or in elec­tronic format. More book by Philip Delves Broughton Thoughts: The Art of the Sale by Philip Delves Broughton (website | Twitter) is a fun, charming and educational book which gives one a glimpse into the world of the sales force. The book can be read in parts as every chapter gives anecdotes from successful salesman. One of my biggest regrets is not learning how to sell. My friend Tripp Braden told me a long time ago that if I knew how to sell I’d never have to look for a job. The more I get immersed in the business world, the more I see how right he was. I convinced myself I was a bad salesman, from some unbeknownst reason which I’m not willing to dwell…

Tightwad Tuesday – Free or Affordable eBooks – World War II
Latest Posts , Tightwad Tuesday / April 3, 2012

Welcome to another edition of Tightwad Tuesday. If you follow this blog you know I read many books on World War II – so here are some selections I found for the Kindle and the nook on this topic. For the Kindle: The Miracle of Stalag 8A (Stalag VIII-A) – Beauty Beyond the Horror: Olivier Messiaen and the Quartet for the End of Time by John William McMullen The Miracle of Stalag 8A is a retelling of the fascinating story of Olivier Messiaen’s composition of his Quartet for the End of Time. Set in France & Germany from 1939 to 1941, Messiaen served in the French army, was captured at Verdun, and sent to Stalag 8A in Gorlitz, Germany, where he composed the great work, The Quartet for the End of Time. The enigmatic Messiaen, an avant-garde composer and also a devout Catholic, along with Etienne Pasquier, an agnostic cellist, Henri Akoka, a Jewish Trotskyite Clarinetist, and Jean le Boulaire, an atheistic violinist, become the famous quartet of Stalag 8A. These four very different men collaborated to create musical history in the most unlikely of places. Messiaen’s Quartet, composed in a Stalag, transforms man’s inhumanity to man with hope. Yet…

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