Winner of the Pulitzer PrizeIn this groundbreaking biography of the Japanese emperor Hirohito, Herbert P. Bix offers the first complete, unvarnished look at the enigmatic leader whose sixty-three-year reign ushered Japan into the modern world. Never before has the full life of this controversial figure been revealed with such clarity and vividness. Bix shows what it was like to be trained from birth for a lone position at the apex of the nation's political hierarchy and as a revered symbol of divine status. Influenced by an unusual combination of the Japanese imperial tradition and a modern scientific worldview, the young emperor gradually evolves into his preeminent role, aligning himself with the growing ultranationalist movement, perpetuating a cult of religious emperor worship, resisting attempts to curb his power, and all the while burnishing his image as a reluctant, passive monarch. Here we see Hirohito as he truly was: a man of strong will and real authority.Supported by a vast array of previously untapped primary documents, Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan is perhaps most illuminating in lifting the veil on the mythology surrounding the emperor's impact on the world stage. Focusing closely on Hirohito's interactions with his advisers and successive Japanese governments, Bix sheds new light on the causes of the China War in 1937 and the start of the Asia-Pacific War in 1941. And while conventional wisdom has had it that the nation's increasing foreign aggression was driven and maintained not by the emperor but by an elite group of Japanese militarists, the reality, as witnessed here, is quite different. Bix documents in detail the strong, decisive role Hirohito played in wartime operations, from the takeover of Manchuria in 1931 through the attack on Pearl Harbor and ultimately the fateful decision in 1945 to accede to an unconditional surrender. In fact, the emperor stubbornly prolonged the war effort and then used the horrifying bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, together with the Soviet entrance into the war, as his exit strategy from a no-win situation. From the moment of capitulation, we see how American and Japanese leaders moved to justify the retention of Hirohito as emperor by whitewashing his wartime role and reshaping the historical consciousness of the Japanese people. The key to this strategy was Hirohito's alliance with General MacArthur, who helped him maintain his stature and shed his militaristic image, while MacArthur used the emperor as a figurehead to assist him in converting Japan into a peaceful nation. Their partnership ensured that the emperor's image would loom large over the postwar years and later decades, as Japan began to make its way in the modern age and struggled -- as it still does -- to come to terms with its past.Until the very end of a career that embodied the conflicting aims of Japan's development as a nation, Hirohito remained preoccupied with politics and with his place in history. Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan provides the definitive account of his rich life and legacy. Meticulously researched and utterly engaging, this book is proof that the history of twentieth-century Japan cannot be understood apart from the life of its most remarkable and enduring leader.Amazon.com ReviewTo many, Emperor Hirohito of Japan is remembered as a helpless figurehead during Japan's wars with China and the U.S. According to the received wisdom, he knew nothing of the plan to bomb Pearl Harbor and had no power to stop atrocities like the Rape of Nanking. The emperor was the mild-mannered little man who traipsed with Mickey Mouse in Disneyland and who brought peace through surrender, certainly not "one of the most disingenuous persons ever to occupy the modern throne." Herbert Bix's charged political biography, however, argues that such accepted beliefs are myths and misrepresentations spun by both Japanese and Americans to protect the emperor from indictment. Since Hirohito's death in 1989, hundreds of documents, diaries, and scholarly studies have been published (and subsequently ignored) in Japan. Historian Bix used these sources to develop this shocking and nuanced portrait of a man far more shrewd, activist, and energetic than previously thought. Caught up in the fever of territorial expansion, Hirohito was the force that animated the war system, who, acting fully as a military leader and head of state, encouraged the belligerency of his people and pursued the war to its disastrous conclusion. To the very end, Hirohito refused to acknowledge any responsibility for his role in the death of millions as well as the brutalities inflicted by his forces in China, Korea, and the Philippines. In fact, he worked with none other than General MacArthur to select his fall guys and fix testimony at the Tokyo War Crimes Trials--the emperor trying to protect the throne at all cost, the U.S. acting to ensure control of the Japanese population and the military by retaining Hirohito as a figurehead. Not surprisingly, this hefty work of scholarship is making waves, as Americans and Japanese reconsider their roles in WWII and its aftermath. By placing Hirohito back in the center of the picture and puncturing the myths that surround him, Bix has effectively asked the Japanese to come out of their half-century repression of the past and face their wartime responsibility. Without doing so, he implies, the monarchy will forever impede the development of democracy. For those interested in Japan's wartime past and its influence on the present, this is fascinating, if lengthy, reading. --Lesley ReedFrom Publishers WeeklyBix penetrates decades of "public opacity" to offer a stunning portrait of the controversial Japanese emperor, "one of the most disingenuous persons ever to occupy the modern throne." Hirohito ascended to the Japanese throne in 1926 (at the age of 25) and ruled until his death in 1989. Bix closely examines his long, eventful reign, concentrating on the extent of the emperor's influence-which was greater than he admitted-over the political and military life of Japan during WWII. Bix's command of primary sources is apparent throughout the book, especially in the voluminous endnotes. From these sources, the author, a veteran scholar on modern Japanese history, draws a nuanced and balanced portrayal of an emperor who did not seek out war, but who demanded victories once war began and never took action to stop Japan's reckless descent into defeat. Bix makes Hirohito's later career intelligible by a careful exposition of the conflicting influences imposed on the emperor as a child: a passion for hard science coexisted with the myths of his own divine origin and destiny; he was taught benevolence along with belief in military supremacy. These influences unfolded as Hirohito was drawn into Japan's long conflict with China, its alliance with the fascist states of Europe, and its unwinnable war against the Allies. The dominant interest of the Showa ("radiant peace") Emperor, Bix convincingly explains, was to perpetuate the imperial system against more democratic opponents, no matter what the cost. Bix gives a meticulous account of his subject, delivers measured judgements about his accomplishments and failures, and reveals the subtlety of the emperor's character as a man who, while seemingly detached and remote, is in fact controlling events from behind the imperial screen. This is political biography at its most compelling. Agent, Susan Rabiner. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 13
In the wake of several dangerous railroad accidents where a masked samurai swordsman is seen repeatedly, Dr. Harold Smith sends his associates Remo Williams and Master Chiun to pose as DOT investigators. Views: 13
I stopped believing in monsters long ago. But I knew I wasn't imagining
things when I found one in my kitchen baking muffins. I'd seen him before: lurking in my
closet, scaring the crap out of my five-year-old self. Turns out that was a
misunderstanding, and now Maurice needs a place to stay. How could I say no? After all,
I've always been a magnet for the emotionally needy, and not just in my work as a
wedding planner. Being able to sense the feelings of others can be a major pain. Don't
get me wrong, I like helping people - and non-people. But this ability has turned me
into a gourmet feast for an incubus, a demon that feeds off emotional energy. Now,
brides are dropping dead all over town, and my home has become a safe house for the
supernatural. I must learn to focus my powers and defeat the demon before he snacks on
another innocent woman and comes looking for the main course… Views: 13
Once, long ago, the Council of Aggar sought the help of Diana n'Athena. Bonded to the Blue-Sighted Shadow Elana, the Amazon and her new love successfully adverted an intergalactic conflict that would that destroyed the planet. But over the course of generations, the folly of the Terran Galactic Empire brought war after all and Aggar was again in danger. This time the dey Sorormin Amazons responded with an entire fleet. The metal-poor Aggar would be eradicated without their guardianship and so they came. They brought the technologies and the raw materials Aggar would need to survive, and they brought their families, their livestock and choice crops. For everyone knew, that even before the warring was done, space travel would be a thing of the past, too dangerous to attempt. The Amazons would come to call Aggar home. Gwyn, dey Sorormin and Royal Marshal, is called to the aid of Llinolae, a Blue-Sighted woman and Ruler of Khirla. The brigand Terran Clan is launching bloody raids on Khirla and may be behind a traitorous plot within Llinolae's own household. Llinolae's gift allows her to see out-of-time to receive council from a very precious couple - one Amazon, one Blue-Sighted - but even that is not enough. With the help of Gwyn's bond-mated Sandwolves, and friends Brit n'Minona and the Shadow Sparrow n'Sappho, Gwyn and Llinolae struggle side-by-side against the Clan and find themselves caught in an ever-strengthening bond of love. The excitement, romance and epic adventures of Shadows of Aggar have returned. Sword fights, magical duels, sharp wits and mythical creatures, all converge among the giant trees of Aggar's forests, returning readers everywhere to a beloved world.From Library JournalClan raiders, descendants of colonists stranded on the planet Aggar at the fall of the Galactic Terran Empire, threaten the integrity of the nearby domain of Ramains. Royal Marshall Gwyn, along with her companions, ride to the assistance of Dracoon Llinolae, the physically gifted governor of Ramains's capital. Affirmatively, though not stridently, with a lesbian in focus, this sequel to Shadows of Aggar (New Victoria Pub., 1991) features swashbuckling adventure, palace intrigue, and enough magic and swordplay to appeal to a sizable readership.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. From BooklistSince Frank Herbert's Dune broke into mass consciousness in the late 1960s, many science fiction and fantasy readers have come to expect as standard its compelling mix of medieval and high-tech weaponry and mores, hippie consciousness, and politically correct language and viewpoint. Fires of Aggar will not disappoint them. Its detailed prologue provides historical background for the subsequent tale of the Amazons of dey Sorormin (the Sisterhood) who are gifted with the "blue sight," which bestows mystical powers and the ability to see across light-years, and who fight to right the wrongs inflicted on the peaceful Khirlan District by the Terran Clans. What follows is basically a tale of lesbian love set against a backdrop of political intrigue and mystical power-jockeying. With its "lifestone bonding" of partners, creating relationships of such closeness that separation for 10 days could cause death, and with the endearing characters Ril and Ty--loyal, stub-tailed "sandwolves" devoted to the safekeeping of the proud, grieving, and determined heroine, Gwyn'l--it has a fey charm. Whitney Scott Views: 13
Follow Nemo on an exciting day at school. Views: 13
When Michael D'Alessandro discovers that three years ago his ex-wife gave birth and then had his baby adopted, his only desire is to find his son.Michael finds little Jeremy safe and utterly loved by his new mom, the lovely Camille. Soon passion takes over. But Camille is unaware that Jeremy is Michael's son. How can Michael tell her the truth - and keep both his child and the woman he adores? Views: 13
Melissa Rogers, restless good girl, longs to indulge her sexual fantasies before she meets Mr. Right and settles down. But instead she gets a walk on the really wild side, thanks to the uninhibited neighbor who skips town, leaving Melissa to take her place.Riley Anderson, brilliant private investigator and every woman's fantasy, is assigned to seduce a female suspect. But Melissa Rogers doesn't fit the profile of the woman he's after. This woman makes him long for things he didn't even know he wanted.Will it be pure eroticism, or forever-after commitment? You decide. Views: 13
