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Rating: 
Summary: Great commentary on Japan's cultural influence on the US
Review: I'm not a big fan of anime or other subjects of this book, but the contributors give an interest tour of Japan.One of the contributors, Carl Horn, gives insight into his genre (anime) made me want to give it a second look. I've seen a few films, Akira and such, and of course the classic anime series like Star Blazers and Speed Racer, but Mr. Horn gives a great perspective on the genre. I was particularly charmed by the story of discovering anime in Iran, where he apparently grew up. This is not just a genre love-piece. I didn't feel that I was being somehow excluded or that I was supposed to know something about anime (or the other Japanese subcultures covered in the book) before reading this book. An excellent introduction to an interesting cultural pheonm.
Rating: 
Summary: Japan Edge
Review: This book covers several subjects of 'sub-culture' in/from Japan: Manga, Anime, Film, Music and Noise Music. For the veteran of any of these fields this book will be a quick review of fond memories while you comfortably nod your head to the 'nostalgia' it may raise in you. This book chronicles each subject's era it covers quite well and is a good guide for anyone with an interest in putting together a time-line of where their individual interest lie in the whole scheme of things...so being a 'veteran' of some of these subjects, I've found myself happily enjoying it's content and have passed some of it on to friends who have had questions about the wider spectrum of what has already transpired and who's who in a given subject of Manga, Anime, Film, Music or Noise Music from Japan. This book is designed well and feels like a Japanese book for full effect. I recommend this book to almost all interested in these subjects, except maybe an 'Otaku' of these subjects. However, if you're thinking this book is a 'travel guide' it is not. It is more of a contemporary history of the recent past and events. Enjoy.
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