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Finding Japan: Early Canadian Encounters with Asia
In contrast to the widely known experiences of Asian immigrants who came to Canada, this book looks at movement in the opposite direction. Using text and images, it is a collection of stories about how Canadians "found Japan," the first place they reached when travelling westward across the Pacific.
These connections began as early as 1848, when the adventurous son of a Hudson's Bay Company trader tempted fate by smuggling himself, disguised as a shipwrecked sailor, into the closed and exotic land of the shoguns. He was followed by an intriguing cast of characters—missionaries, educators, businessmen, social activists, political figures, diplomats, soldiers and occasional misfits—who experienced a rapidly changing Japan as it underwent its remarkable transformation from a largely feudal society to a modern state.
Now, when the world is becoming more Asia-centric, Finding Japan provides glimpses into an earlier era that challenged conventional perceptions about Canadian connections across the Pacific.
These connections began as early as 1848, when the adventurous son of a Hudson's Bay Company trader tempted fate by smuggling himself, disguised as a shipwrecked sailor, into the closed and exotic land of the shoguns. He was followed by an intriguing cast of characters—missionaries, educators, businessmen, social activists, political figures, diplomats, soldiers and occasional misfits—who experienced a rapidly changing Japan as it underwent its remarkable transformation from a largely feudal society to a modern state.
Now, when the world is becoming more Asia-centric, Finding Japan provides glimpses into an earlier era that challenged conventional perceptions about Canadian connections across the Pacific.
- GenresNonfictionJapan
256 pages, Paperback
First published September 30, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 27, 2017
http://101booksjapan.blogspot.ca/
Finding Japan is a huge - and pleasant - surprise. Many readers will be just like me having never realized that the connections between Canada and Japan were so rich, varied, and deep.
Finding Japan looks at this long history. It starts even before U.S. gunboats opened a closed island Japan to the world -- with the story of the Canadian son of an HBC trader who marooned himself in Japan, and ended up teaching English to the man who would translate for the Americans when the arrived in their black ships.
The ties are commercial as well - and includes the story of Canada's growing trade in wheat and especially buckwheat in the early 20th century.
The biggest surprise for me, though, was the connections between Nitobe Inazō (The author of Bushido: The Soul of Japan) and Canada. I had no idea he died in Victoria.
Well worth a read -- and you'll find out why you eat mandarin oranges at Christmas time in Canada!
Finding Japan is a huge - and pleasant - surprise. Many readers will be just like me having never realized that the connections between Canada and Japan were so rich, varied, and deep.
Finding Japan looks at this long history. It starts even before U.S. gunboats opened a closed island Japan to the world -- with the story of the Canadian son of an HBC trader who marooned himself in Japan, and ended up teaching English to the man who would translate for the Americans when the arrived in their black ships.
The ties are commercial as well - and includes the story of Canada's growing trade in wheat and especially buckwheat in the early 20th century.
The biggest surprise for me, though, was the connections between Nitobe Inazō (The author of Bushido: The Soul of Japan) and Canada. I had no idea he died in Victoria.
Well worth a read -- and you'll find out why you eat mandarin oranges at Christmas time in Canada!
December 15, 2024
Very interesting. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to know more about Canadian and Japanese history.
The book specifically looks at Canadians who went to Japan, beginning with a man in 1848 when Japan was still closed off, and ending in the aftermath of the Pacific War in the 1950s. There are many women included, some of them so intriguing that it made me want to research them more.
I found the author's style engaging and well-written. There are so many people and places mentioned, yet she writes it in a witty way, managing to give a lot of information in short sections without overloading. Much of the book has to do with politics, which isn't usually my favourite subject, and yet it was fascinating. The author used to work for the Canadian embassy in Japan and is extremely knowledgeable; the content is well-researched. This is a valuable resource for both countries.
It's nice to know that there have always been Canadians enamored with Japan and I'm nothing new.
The book specifically looks at Canadians who went to Japan, beginning with a man in 1848 when Japan was still closed off, and ending in the aftermath of the Pacific War in the 1950s. There are many women included, some of them so intriguing that it made me want to research them more.
I found the author's style engaging and well-written. There are so many people and places mentioned, yet she writes it in a witty way, managing to give a lot of information in short sections without overloading. Much of the book has to do with politics, which isn't usually my favourite subject, and yet it was fascinating. The author used to work for the Canadian embassy in Japan and is extremely knowledgeable; the content is well-researched. This is a valuable resource for both countries.
It's nice to know that there have always been Canadians enamored with Japan and I'm nothing new.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews