This is a satisfying hors d'oeuvre that awakens readers' intellects while whetting their appetite for more substantial fare. It is a quirky, opinionated and selective narrative redolent of what is most alluring about Victorian writers. Some university dons will frown, but most readers will enjoy this lively account written with Ian Buruma's customary panache and eye for telling detail.
Seven brief chapters are framed between a prologue and epilogue. The index is innovative, listing Japanese by their surnames. The bibliographic essay is useful as a guide for further exploration.
Perhaps only Buruma could get away with beginning such a book with an anecdote from the Tokyo Olympics. In a highly anticipated match, the giant Dutch judo champ defeated the plucky Japanese gold medal hopeful, dashing the dreams of a nation while winning their respect by showing good grace in victory. From there Buruma shifts to the Black Ships and the somewhat less graceful, and much less appreciated, arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry.