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Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan is a bewitching look into a world that few Westerners saw in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries—a world that still endures in many ways in spite of the changes that have taken place during the modernization of Japan.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1894
About the author
Lafcadio Hearn
1,055 books478 followersGreek-born American writer Lafcadio Hearn spent 15 years in Japan; people note his collections of stories and essays, including
Kokoro
(1896), under pen name Koizumi Yakumo.
Rosa Cassimati (Ρόζα Αντωνίου Κασιμάτη in Greek), a Greek woman, bore Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (Πατρίκιος Λευκάδιος Χερν in Greek or 小泉八雲 in Japanese), a son, to Charles Hearn, an army doctor from Ireland. After making remarkable works in America as a journalist, he went to Japan in 1890 as a journey report writer of a magazine. He arrived in Yokohama, but because of a dissatisfaction with the contract, he quickly quit the job. He afterward moved to Matsué as an English teacher of Shimané prefectural middle school. In Matsué, he got acquainted with Nishida Sentarô, a colleague teacher and his lifelong friend, and married Koizumi Setsu, a daughter of a samurai.
In 1891, he moved to Kumamoto and taught at the fifth high school for three years. Kanô Jigorô, the president of the school of that time, spread judo to the world.
Hearn worked as a journalist in Kôbé and afterward in 1896 got Japanese citizenship and a new name, Koizumi Yakumo. He took this name from "Kojiki," a Japanese ancient myth, which roughly translates as "the place where the clouds are born". On that year, he moved to Tôkyô and began to teach at the Imperial University of Tôkyô. He got respect of students, many of whom made a remarkable literary career. In addition, he wrote much reports of Japan and published in America. So many people read his works as an introduction of Japan. He quit the Imperial University in 1903 and began to teach at Waseda University on the year next. Nevertheless, after only a half year, he died of angina pectoris.
Rosa Cassimati (Ρόζα Αντωνίου Κασιμάτη in Greek), a Greek woman, bore Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (Πατρίκιος Λευκάδιος Χερν in Greek or 小泉八雲 in Japanese), a son, to Charles Hearn, an army doctor from Ireland. After making remarkable works in America as a journalist, he went to Japan in 1890 as a journey report writer of a magazine. He arrived in Yokohama, but because of a dissatisfaction with the contract, he quickly quit the job. He afterward moved to Matsué as an English teacher of Shimané prefectural middle school. In Matsué, he got acquainted with Nishida Sentarô, a colleague teacher and his lifelong friend, and married Koizumi Setsu, a daughter of a samurai.
In 1891, he moved to Kumamoto and taught at the fifth high school for three years. Kanô Jigorô, the president of the school of that time, spread judo to the world.
Hearn worked as a journalist in Kôbé and afterward in 1896 got Japanese citizenship and a new name, Koizumi Yakumo. He took this name from "Kojiki," a Japanese ancient myth, which roughly translates as "the place where the clouds are born". On that year, he moved to Tôkyô and began to teach at the Imperial University of Tôkyô. He got respect of students, many of whom made a remarkable literary career. In addition, he wrote much reports of Japan and published in America. So many people read his works as an introduction of Japan. He quit the Imperial University in 1903 and began to teach at Waseda University on the year next. Nevertheless, after only a half year, he died of angina pectoris.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
March 15, 2018
"Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan" is a compilation of 27 sketches on Japanese culture, of which 10 appeared initially in publications such as the Atlantic Monthly intended for the general American public. The pieces are tremendously charming and cover a wide range of topics including Shinto, Buddhism in its Japanese form, religious architecture, superstition, cuisine, music, mythology, clothing, hair styles, domestic architecture, geishas, gardening, poetry, calligraphy, art (especially kakemono), children's toys, retailing, the Japanese love of nature, education and child rearing. Hearn's book will be tremendous delight to someone like myself who has been a fan of Japanese popular culture for almost sixty hours.
Although the book is overly long and given to dreadful meanders it contains two major themes that give it unity. First it describes Hearn's spiritual voyage to his conversion to Buddhism which will occur in 1896 roughly two years after the publication of "Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan". Second it provides a comprehensive analysis of the religious culture in Japan given particular prominence to the dialogue between Buddhism and Shinto.
A major thesis of Hearn is that Buddhism is true monotheistic religion focussed on developing the inner Buddha and overcoming existential pain by not seeking physical pleasure whereas Shinto is simply the set of values of the Japanese people with no explicit theology. In Hearn's view Buddhism was suffering badly under modernization whereas Shinto was becoming stronger at the end of the nineteenth century. Hearn argued that in the new industrial world Shinto's core ideas of loyalty to family and society had strong appeal whereas Buddhism appeared increasingly to be a quaint old-fashioned spirituality.
Hearn is above-all an aesthete like Ruskin or Proust who gushes with enthusiasm for the culture. If one shares Hearn's extravagant love Japanese culture "Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan" is a great read.
Although the book is overly long and given to dreadful meanders it contains two major themes that give it unity. First it describes Hearn's spiritual voyage to his conversion to Buddhism which will occur in 1896 roughly two years after the publication of "Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan". Second it provides a comprehensive analysis of the religious culture in Japan given particular prominence to the dialogue between Buddhism and Shinto.
A major thesis of Hearn is that Buddhism is true monotheistic religion focussed on developing the inner Buddha and overcoming existential pain by not seeking physical pleasure whereas Shinto is simply the set of values of the Japanese people with no explicit theology. In Hearn's view Buddhism was suffering badly under modernization whereas Shinto was becoming stronger at the end of the nineteenth century. Hearn argued that in the new industrial world Shinto's core ideas of loyalty to family and society had strong appeal whereas Buddhism appeared increasingly to be a quaint old-fashioned spirituality.
Hearn is above-all an aesthete like Ruskin or Proust who gushes with enthusiasm for the culture. If one shares Hearn's extravagant love Japanese culture "Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan" is a great read.
March 14, 2013
I really enjoy reading Hearn, you feel the love, admiration and respect he had for the country and the people. He seemed a man ahead of his time, there's no bigotry or superiority complex in his writings. I loved reading this book, the descriptions of the temples and shrines, nature, even the curiosity of the people on seeing a foreigner. He writes about the everyday man and woman, their kindness to him, the changes the country is going through. His writings on buddhism, shinto, the syncretism and the beliefs of each one are very interesting.
November 2, 2012
Hearn certainly gives unfamiliar glimpses of Japan in this book. Exploring out-of-the-way villages and remote shrines, Hearn wrote about the country’s culture and tradition from the perspective, mostly, of a traveler so delighted, charmed and, eventually, bewitched by what he saw that he didn’t leave and settled in Japan for good. He discussed many aspects of the Japanese culture – from cemeteries to dolls; sacred groves to child raising; boating to suicide rituals – that one would be impressed by the great lengths he put into his writing, for he did took the trouble to write down names and some dialogues in Japanese. The text, though, focuses mostly on how ingrained Shinto and Buddhism had been in the lives of simple people who mostly hadn’t seen a European before. Hearn wrote in great details the temples he visited – their architecture, and economic and spiritual influences. He devoted great pages on folklore, pantheons of Shinto gods and goddesses, and religious rituals. Although he lamented a bit on how the big and busy cities are becoming Occidentalized, Hearn never judged nor looked down on the people he met. He described what he saw and left no room for editorializing. That is, no Me-Tarzan-you-Cheetah remarks in the book. However, the very fascination he held for the people and land didn’t leave much room for any negative traits either. (No wonder he was accused of romanticizing the Japanese to a fault.) And he seemed to have forgotten at times that his regret in the invasion of Western advancements was ironic considering that the very presence of Buddhism, which he explored in great details in this book, shows that an earlier invasion had come to the land – that before “occidentalization” “orientalization” had come first.
April 4, 2013
My favorite book on ancient Japan, especially the parts that relate to Izumo (now Shimane prefecture), where I lived for three years on the JET program. Every time I explored an obscure shrine or temple or very remote mountain and seaside village around lake Shinji (between Izumo and Matsue), I tried to imagine how Hearn would have seen them. And it was quite a trip to find out that his grandson Koizumi Bon works at a university in Shimane. I once met the Irish ambassador to Japan on a ferry heading to Oki Island, tracing the travels of Hearn, who was half-Irish, half-Greek. He was actually researching how much Hearn's wife was involved in producing his books, especially Kwaidan.
Hearn (who chose the Japanese name Koizumi Yakumo and had three children in Shimane) writes with such beautiful descriptive language about aspects of Japan neglected by those who only spent time in more modernized parts of Japan. His writing skills were first honed as a crime beat journalist in New Orleans, and developed more fully through his love of Japan. His works on Japan deserve much greater attention than they have until now.
Hearn (who chose the Japanese name Koizumi Yakumo and had three children in Shimane) writes with such beautiful descriptive language about aspects of Japan neglected by those who only spent time in more modernized parts of Japan. His writing skills were first honed as a crime beat journalist in New Orleans, and developed more fully through his love of Japan. His works on Japan deserve much greater attention than they have until now.
July 18, 2012
Considering this is available on Gutenberg, I`m surprised more, especially many of my friends on Goodreads who are avid readers of Japanese literature have not at least added this to their to-read list.
Hearn`s definitely worth reading if you are interested in the Japanese culture of the past, and to some extent, the present.
Hearn`s definitely worth reading if you are interested in the Japanese culture of the past, and to some extent, the present.
July 15, 2019
Lafcadio Hearn (1850–1904) had one life-long obsession: the quest for the odd, the exotic and the monstrous. Born in Greece from an Irish father serving in the British military and a Greek mother, his first name recalled Lefkada, the island of his birth. At age two he was brought to Ireland and discarded by both parents whose marriage soon broke up - he would never meet them again. Hearn was brought up with Christian severity by a wealthy great-aunt who mostly sent him away to boarding schools - also one in France, which gave Hearn his excellent command of that language; interestingly, he was a classmate of Guy de Maupassant, and maintained a life-long interested in French literature. In a fight at school in the U.K., Hearn lost the sight in one eye and this made him look rather grotesque: he had to go through life with one blind eye and one bulging, staring eye and was very myopic. He was also painfully introverted. The strictly religious upbringing gave him a strong dislike of organized religion and later in life Hearn professed himself as a pagan, harking back to both his Greek heritage and beliefs he encountered in Japan.
After Hearn's great-aunt was swindled out of her money, Hearn had to start fending for himself, and at age 19 he crossed over to the United States to seek his fortune in the New World, where he ended up in Cincinnati. After working as a proof reader, he started doing journalistic work, finally becoming a reporter for the Cincinnati Daily Enquirer, achieving local fame for his lurid accounts of murders and other sensational crimes. At this time, already, Hearn was drawn to anecdote and exoticism. A relationship with an African-American woman, illegal at the time, led to his dismissal as editorial writer and, enticed by the exotic South, in 1877 Hearn moved to New Orleans, where during the next ten years he wrote for several papers, such as the Times-Democrat. His main interests were the Creole population and its culture, including its cuisine – Hearn even wrote a Creole cookbook. He wrote odd fantasies and arabesques for the paper and also contributed articles and sketches to national magazines, such as Harper's and Scribner's; in addition to publishing his first creative works: the novella Chita (about a tsunami that destroys an island in the Gulf of Mexico, sweeping everybody away, the only survivor a child clinging to the dead body of its mother), Stray Leaves from Strange Literature, a retelling of stories from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, Buddhist legend, etc., as well as translations from the lushly decadent French author Théophile Gautier.
Hearn loved the dilapidated streets and crumbling wooden houses of the Creole town, the vestiges of French and Spanish culture, the ancestor worship and the voodoo ceremonies. But the South was modernizing, too, having recovered from the Civil War, as was symbolized by the World Fair of 1884 held in the city. Incidentally, the World Fair also became Hearn's first deeper acquaintance with Japan - he dedicated several articles to the Japanese pavilion and the fine workmanship of the crafts on display and befriended Hattori Ichizo, who was in charge of the Educational Exhibit. But all the newfangled electric lights brought on by the Fair meant that the Creole City was losing its charm and in 1887 Hearn left for more exotic climes. He was sent by Harper's as a correspondent to the West Indies and lived for two years in St. Pierre on Martinique, which led to two books about these exotic islands, one a travelogue and the other the novel Youma.
Then in 1890 Hearn had the chance to travel to Japan to write a series of articles, but once there, he liked the country so much that with the help of Basil Hall Chamberlain, the well-known English Professor at Tokyo Imperial University with whom Hearn had been corresponding, he stayed on and started working in various teaching jobs. His first teaching job was in Matsue, a town with an old history, rich in legends and folklore, in Western Japan on the Japan Sea coast – a place exactly after Hearn's heart. During his 15-month stay in Matsue, he married Koizumi Setsu, the daughter of a local samurai. Later, he became a naturalized Japanese with the name Koizumi Yakumo. The stay in then still heavily traditional Matsue was formative: Hearn developed into the collector of miscellany, the transcriber of local lore, countless bits of information from the old Japan that was fast being discarded by the Japanese themselves. He wrote about Buddhist festivals, fireflies, the Japanese smile, women's hair, any traditional subject that intrigued him.
After a further teaching job in Kumamoto (a matter-of-fact modernizing city Hearn was not so fond of) and a stint as journalist in Kobe, in 1896 Hearn could move to Tokyo where he received a prestigious teaching position at Tokyo University (thanks again to the help from his friends). Hearn, an extremely hard worker who had ruined his health with his frenetic journalistic jobs and fits of extreme poverty in the U.S., died in 1904 of heart failure, aged only 54 years.
Hearn's first book about Japan, Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, was published in 1894 and until his death, every year a new book would follow, including the famous Kwaidan (1903). In these books, Hearn concentrated on folklore, ghost stories, insects, quaint things and, of course, graves. Hearn became known to the world by his writings about Japan, and is more famous in Japan than in the West, where critics accuse him of treating his adopted country in an exotic way. True, Hearn was not a great original author, he was a re-teller, an interpreter of other cultures for a Western public. But his hunting for strange pieces of literature from the whole world reminds me of Borges; while his writings, mostly short, diverse, about any topic that happened to strike his fancy, are like a superior blog.
Hearn has always been honored in Japan because of his reverence for the Japanese tradition, for which he even gave up his own culture, although much of that tradition was in the process of being discarded by the Japanese themselves. In contrast to other foreigners in Japan at that time, he was not arrogant and did not look down on the Japanese - on the contrary, he disliked the Western community and evaded it as much as possible. Hearn lived in his own imagination and his many books provide fascinating vignettes about old customs and quaint lore, about the odd, the exotic and the monstrous - subjects Hearn sought after for his whole life. But as the selections below show, in Japan Hearn also found happiness. They are not only interesting as glimpses of Japanese culture, but also as Hearn's visions of the bizarre.
My favorite book by Hearn is Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, originally published in two volumes in 1894, because Hearn's observations about Japan, just after his arrival in both Yokohama and Matsue, are the freshest. Take for example "My first Day in the Orient". Hearn had long been in love with Japanese culture before he arrived in Yokohama on April 4, 1890, and here he describes his first impressions of the country during a ride by kuruma (rickshaw) out of the European quarter of Yokohama into the Japanese town. Also today's reader can still experience that "first charm of Japan, intangible and volatile as a perfume."
In "The Chief City of the Province of the Gods" Hearn describes his arrival in Matsue, the capital of remote Shimane Prefecture. Hearn received a position as teacher English and arrived there on August 30, 1890. This essay gives his first impressions of the city he loved most in Japan. Other impressive essays are for example "In the Cave of the Children's Ghosts," "In a Japanese Garden" (in which Hearn describes the garden of a samurai house he rented in Matsue, now open to the public as "Lafcadio Hearn's Residence" together with a neighboring "Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum"), the strange "Of Women's Hair" and "From Hoki to Oki" about his visit to the Oki Islands.
In the pages of this book are the customs, the superstitions, the charming scenery, the revelations of Japanese character, and all the other elements that Lafcadio Hearn found so bewitching. Here, for example, are essays on such subjects as the Japanese garden, the household shrine, the festivals, and the bewildering Japanese smile—all aspects of Japanese life that have endured in spite of the changes that have taken place during the modernization of Japan. The Japanese character and the Japanese tradition are still fundamentally the same as Hearn found them to be, and for this reason, his writing is still extremely revealing to modern readers.
Also read my blog https://adblankestijn.blogspot.com/.
After Hearn's great-aunt was swindled out of her money, Hearn had to start fending for himself, and at age 19 he crossed over to the United States to seek his fortune in the New World, where he ended up in Cincinnati. After working as a proof reader, he started doing journalistic work, finally becoming a reporter for the Cincinnati Daily Enquirer, achieving local fame for his lurid accounts of murders and other sensational crimes. At this time, already, Hearn was drawn to anecdote and exoticism. A relationship with an African-American woman, illegal at the time, led to his dismissal as editorial writer and, enticed by the exotic South, in 1877 Hearn moved to New Orleans, where during the next ten years he wrote for several papers, such as the Times-Democrat. His main interests were the Creole population and its culture, including its cuisine – Hearn even wrote a Creole cookbook. He wrote odd fantasies and arabesques for the paper and also contributed articles and sketches to national magazines, such as Harper's and Scribner's; in addition to publishing his first creative works: the novella Chita (about a tsunami that destroys an island in the Gulf of Mexico, sweeping everybody away, the only survivor a child clinging to the dead body of its mother), Stray Leaves from Strange Literature, a retelling of stories from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, Buddhist legend, etc., as well as translations from the lushly decadent French author Théophile Gautier.
Hearn loved the dilapidated streets and crumbling wooden houses of the Creole town, the vestiges of French and Spanish culture, the ancestor worship and the voodoo ceremonies. But the South was modernizing, too, having recovered from the Civil War, as was symbolized by the World Fair of 1884 held in the city. Incidentally, the World Fair also became Hearn's first deeper acquaintance with Japan - he dedicated several articles to the Japanese pavilion and the fine workmanship of the crafts on display and befriended Hattori Ichizo, who was in charge of the Educational Exhibit. But all the newfangled electric lights brought on by the Fair meant that the Creole City was losing its charm and in 1887 Hearn left for more exotic climes. He was sent by Harper's as a correspondent to the West Indies and lived for two years in St. Pierre on Martinique, which led to two books about these exotic islands, one a travelogue and the other the novel Youma.
Then in 1890 Hearn had the chance to travel to Japan to write a series of articles, but once there, he liked the country so much that with the help of Basil Hall Chamberlain, the well-known English Professor at Tokyo Imperial University with whom Hearn had been corresponding, he stayed on and started working in various teaching jobs. His first teaching job was in Matsue, a town with an old history, rich in legends and folklore, in Western Japan on the Japan Sea coast – a place exactly after Hearn's heart. During his 15-month stay in Matsue, he married Koizumi Setsu, the daughter of a local samurai. Later, he became a naturalized Japanese with the name Koizumi Yakumo. The stay in then still heavily traditional Matsue was formative: Hearn developed into the collector of miscellany, the transcriber of local lore, countless bits of information from the old Japan that was fast being discarded by the Japanese themselves. He wrote about Buddhist festivals, fireflies, the Japanese smile, women's hair, any traditional subject that intrigued him.
After a further teaching job in Kumamoto (a matter-of-fact modernizing city Hearn was not so fond of) and a stint as journalist in Kobe, in 1896 Hearn could move to Tokyo where he received a prestigious teaching position at Tokyo University (thanks again to the help from his friends). Hearn, an extremely hard worker who had ruined his health with his frenetic journalistic jobs and fits of extreme poverty in the U.S., died in 1904 of heart failure, aged only 54 years.
Hearn's first book about Japan, Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, was published in 1894 and until his death, every year a new book would follow, including the famous Kwaidan (1903). In these books, Hearn concentrated on folklore, ghost stories, insects, quaint things and, of course, graves. Hearn became known to the world by his writings about Japan, and is more famous in Japan than in the West, where critics accuse him of treating his adopted country in an exotic way. True, Hearn was not a great original author, he was a re-teller, an interpreter of other cultures for a Western public. But his hunting for strange pieces of literature from the whole world reminds me of Borges; while his writings, mostly short, diverse, about any topic that happened to strike his fancy, are like a superior blog.
Hearn has always been honored in Japan because of his reverence for the Japanese tradition, for which he even gave up his own culture, although much of that tradition was in the process of being discarded by the Japanese themselves. In contrast to other foreigners in Japan at that time, he was not arrogant and did not look down on the Japanese - on the contrary, he disliked the Western community and evaded it as much as possible. Hearn lived in his own imagination and his many books provide fascinating vignettes about old customs and quaint lore, about the odd, the exotic and the monstrous - subjects Hearn sought after for his whole life. But as the selections below show, in Japan Hearn also found happiness. They are not only interesting as glimpses of Japanese culture, but also as Hearn's visions of the bizarre.
My favorite book by Hearn is Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, originally published in two volumes in 1894, because Hearn's observations about Japan, just after his arrival in both Yokohama and Matsue, are the freshest. Take for example "My first Day in the Orient". Hearn had long been in love with Japanese culture before he arrived in Yokohama on April 4, 1890, and here he describes his first impressions of the country during a ride by kuruma (rickshaw) out of the European quarter of Yokohama into the Japanese town. Also today's reader can still experience that "first charm of Japan, intangible and volatile as a perfume."
In "The Chief City of the Province of the Gods" Hearn describes his arrival in Matsue, the capital of remote Shimane Prefecture. Hearn received a position as teacher English and arrived there on August 30, 1890. This essay gives his first impressions of the city he loved most in Japan. Other impressive essays are for example "In the Cave of the Children's Ghosts," "In a Japanese Garden" (in which Hearn describes the garden of a samurai house he rented in Matsue, now open to the public as "Lafcadio Hearn's Residence" together with a neighboring "Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum"), the strange "Of Women's Hair" and "From Hoki to Oki" about his visit to the Oki Islands.
In the pages of this book are the customs, the superstitions, the charming scenery, the revelations of Japanese character, and all the other elements that Lafcadio Hearn found so bewitching. Here, for example, are essays on such subjects as the Japanese garden, the household shrine, the festivals, and the bewildering Japanese smile—all aspects of Japanese life that have endured in spite of the changes that have taken place during the modernization of Japan. The Japanese character and the Japanese tradition are still fundamentally the same as Hearn found them to be, and for this reason, his writing is still extremely revealing to modern readers.
Also read my blog https://adblankestijn.blogspot.com/.
July 20, 2016
A beautiful trip to the past: nineteenth century Japan as seen through the eyes of half-Irish half-Greek Lafcadio Hearn. Cultural insights into the country that are still relevant over a hundred years later. Surprisingly fresh in his descriptions. Echoes of the Wildean aesthetic as well as the Victorian focus on faeries and the supernatural (Yeats?). However he never goes overboard on the "Mysterious East" of Japan. Perhaps because he decided to settle there after an adventurous life in New Orleans and elsewhere. Footnote: his Irish nanny in Waterford was named Ronane so quite possibly a distant relative!
September 23, 2025
4/19/26: Still love this book very much. I was inspired to pick this back up in earnest after watching a J-drama inspired by Lafcadio Hearn and his wife, set in her hometown of Matsue. I'm still not done, but I will continue to read this from time to time.
Marking this as read for now, setting it aside to make way for Halloween reading. 🙂 This is an amazing book. Very dense, but the writing is so incredibly descriptive. Hearn's travels in Japan are so interesting to read about, and I love learning about the Japanese folklore and Buddhist/Shinto traditions he encountered. I have a feeling this book is one I will continue to chip away at, one essay at a time.
Marking this as read for now, setting it aside to make way for Halloween reading. 🙂 This is an amazing book. Very dense, but the writing is so incredibly descriptive. Hearn's travels in Japan are so interesting to read about, and I love learning about the Japanese folklore and Buddhist/Shinto traditions he encountered. I have a feeling this book is one I will continue to chip away at, one essay at a time.
July 10, 2014
Lafcadio Hearn's travels remind me of Robert Louis Stevenson's "Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes." They were both written in the late 1800s and give you a wonderful glimpse at our world before restaurants, cars and zippers. Hearn is an oddity as he roams the sea towns of western Japan, but he loves the kindness, the religions and the rituals he finds in the Japanese countryside. He also loves ghosts and darkness, so much of his time is spent in Shinto shrines or describing dark waters and high cliffs. I kept hoping he would wander into Kyoto or Tokyo or even a large town...but like Stevenson he never did, so I will move on to Hearn's other books, "Japan: an attempt at Interpretation," and "Kokoro Japanese Inner Life Hints" and see what else he discovered.
October 4, 2026
Important: in one of those cases where I did not metaphorically read the fine print, I only found out with about 20 minutes left in the audiobook that what I was listening to was the ‘First Series’ and not the entire book which at the time of this writing lacks an audiobook version. It does seem like this counts for about 60% of the material though so my thoughts on it would most likely apply to the ‘Second Series’ unless it contains some very out of place curve-balls which is doubtful. And yes, I also mistakenly assumed ‘First Series’ was just an esoteric way of saying ‘First Edition’; now I know better.
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan in its first chapter past a great preface that any review absolutely needs to address (as I will soon) starts off with an excellent piece of advice: “Do not fail to write down your first impressions as soon as possible.” My first visit to Japan came in the summer of 2000 and even now decades later, I still remember two things almost immediately upon leaving the airport: konbini sandwiches are pretty damn good and Tokyo sure was a lot greener than I thought it would be. Of course, projections change over time and while those sandwiches may retain their uniquely Japanese ‘assari’ (lightly sweet) taste, the green may be accurate, but when you realize you’re actually not really in Tokyo proper, but 45 minutes out of it and in an area that had a de facto farmer’s revolution in the 1960’s (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanrizu...), one’s first impressions may at times be perhaps too optimistic.
Thus, in a book about those first impressions, it may be important to keep in mind that these are written for that reason: to record the state of things in something of a virgin state of mind. Those who have lived in Japan for years especially now well over a century past its publication may see the contents and think ‘wistful weaboo fantasy’ and sure, at times, it may come off that way, but cloyingly optimistic with hearty doses of amazement at a culture so removed from how the west works is a good change of pace. The author after all essentially became Japanese, married locally, remained in the country, and even adopted a local name. It’s also safe to say he had seen enough back home and Japan was able to do more and be more peaceful without certain religious and cultural baggage as the introduction dearly notes:
Can a society some consider ‘pagan’ out achieve those that are monotheist? I think this is an important question to keep in mind while reading this book because while Japan both then and now may not be a strongly religious country, spiritually its intermixing of Shinto and Buddhism remains strong. Even the recently deceased hyper-nationalist owner of APA Hotels Toshio Motoya (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toshio_...) noted in an interview in his own magazine (of course) that “Shinto is in the DNA of the Japanese” and as wild as that statement may appear, even several years after reading it, I feel in some ways it is true and this book written well before the first of those deceptively mid-tier hotels were erected shows that even broken jingoistic clocks may once a day be correct.
And even stepping back from the above, but not from religion itself because surprising nobody, Japan is (or perhaps was depending on one’s viewpoint) a very spiritually religious country, the tour our author Lafcadio Hearn provides us continues from attraction to attraction, from one gargantuan bell to another, and what really piqued my interest, the myth of a wandering monk name Jizo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%E1%B9...) whose stories presented in this book are awfully similar to Jewish aggadic legends about the prophet Elijah. Unlike the ‘Lost Tribes are in Japan’ myth which seems to be pushing an odd narrative based on a number of coincidences, the Jizo/Elijah one is more of a cool and quirky happenstance, a unique way to see that some general themes can be found in most any culture regardless of the distance and theological perspectives between them.
Wandering remains the key focus of this book (or at least the first half, see the very first paragraph up above). From town to city, from shrine to temple, encountering both those higher up in the social strata and the poor masses below (for there are many, we are told). One can criticize the book for not really having a clear focus other than showing off ‘unfamiliar’ sides of Japan, but I think that works in its favor. This is a travelogue from another era written well before our own where for reasons that go beyond this review are turning Japan into something of a plus-sized Phuket for foreign tourists. Some may consider it tedious and for those do and want action in your face from page one, perhaps this is where this book slacks. But ‘cautious amazement’ is the key phrase and keeping that in mind may put you in Hearn’s shoes as this is a nice bucolic tale of a time long past, but can be kept alive by reliving it in our memories.
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan in its first chapter past a great preface that any review absolutely needs to address (as I will soon) starts off with an excellent piece of advice: “Do not fail to write down your first impressions as soon as possible.” My first visit to Japan came in the summer of 2000 and even now decades later, I still remember two things almost immediately upon leaving the airport: konbini sandwiches are pretty damn good and Tokyo sure was a lot greener than I thought it would be. Of course, projections change over time and while those sandwiches may retain their uniquely Japanese ‘assari’ (lightly sweet) taste, the green may be accurate, but when you realize you’re actually not really in Tokyo proper, but 45 minutes out of it and in an area that had a de facto farmer’s revolution in the 1960’s (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanrizu...), one’s first impressions may at times be perhaps too optimistic.
Thus, in a book about those first impressions, it may be important to keep in mind that these are written for that reason: to record the state of things in something of a virgin state of mind. Those who have lived in Japan for years especially now well over a century past its publication may see the contents and think ‘wistful weaboo fantasy’ and sure, at times, it may come off that way, but cloyingly optimistic with hearty doses of amazement at a culture so removed from how the west works is a good change of pace. The author after all essentially became Japanese, married locally, remained in the country, and even adopted a local name. It’s also safe to say he had seen enough back home and Japan was able to do more and be more peaceful without certain religious and cultural baggage as the introduction dearly notes:
“More than 160 years ago, Kaempfer wrote of the Japanese, ‘in the practice of virtue, purity of life and outward devotion, they far outdo the Christians.’ And except where native morals have suffered by foreign contamination, as in the open ports, these words are true of the Japanese today. My own conviction, and that of many impartial and many more experienced observers of Japanese life, is that Japan has nothing whatever to gain by conversion to Christianity, either morally or otherwise, but very much to lose.” (my transcription from the audiobook)
Can a society some consider ‘pagan’ out achieve those that are monotheist? I think this is an important question to keep in mind while reading this book because while Japan both then and now may not be a strongly religious country, spiritually its intermixing of Shinto and Buddhism remains strong. Even the recently deceased hyper-nationalist owner of APA Hotels Toshio Motoya (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toshio_...) noted in an interview in his own magazine (of course) that “Shinto is in the DNA of the Japanese” and as wild as that statement may appear, even several years after reading it, I feel in some ways it is true and this book written well before the first of those deceptively mid-tier hotels were erected shows that even broken jingoistic clocks may once a day be correct.
And even stepping back from the above, but not from religion itself because surprising nobody, Japan is (or perhaps was depending on one’s viewpoint) a very spiritually religious country, the tour our author Lafcadio Hearn provides us continues from attraction to attraction, from one gargantuan bell to another, and what really piqued my interest, the myth of a wandering monk name Jizo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%E1%B9...) whose stories presented in this book are awfully similar to Jewish aggadic legends about the prophet Elijah. Unlike the ‘Lost Tribes are in Japan’ myth which seems to be pushing an odd narrative based on a number of coincidences, the Jizo/Elijah one is more of a cool and quirky happenstance, a unique way to see that some general themes can be found in most any culture regardless of the distance and theological perspectives between them.
Wandering remains the key focus of this book (or at least the first half, see the very first paragraph up above). From town to city, from shrine to temple, encountering both those higher up in the social strata and the poor masses below (for there are many, we are told). One can criticize the book for not really having a clear focus other than showing off ‘unfamiliar’ sides of Japan, but I think that works in its favor. This is a travelogue from another era written well before our own where for reasons that go beyond this review are turning Japan into something of a plus-sized Phuket for foreign tourists. Some may consider it tedious and for those do and want action in your face from page one, perhaps this is where this book slacks. But ‘cautious amazement’ is the key phrase and keeping that in mind may put you in Hearn’s shoes as this is a nice bucolic tale of a time long past, but can be kept alive by reliving it in our memories.
February 4, 2017
Hearn is a bit of a legend for me, who has always been interested in Japanese culture. In Glimpses, his account is fair and wholehearted, yet exceedingly descriptive and focused on insights on Japanese temples, shrines, Shinto and Buddhism. Were it more varied in nature, I would have liked it more, though perhaps that is but a feature of the times he wrote it in. Also, the Kindle edition footnotes lack the hyperlink, which makes the attempt of looking quickly at them when they occur rather impractical.
March 6, 2016
Full disclosure: I didn't properly read the whole book. It was a library book, moving houses, excuses excuses.
Hearn is incredibly romantic and poetic, truly the poster man for rose-tinted glasses. However, he is reasonable and far from delusional. More than a hundred years later and though daily life has changed, his writings still read well.
So, all in all, a good book. I enjoyed traveling through his Japan.
Hearn is incredibly romantic and poetic, truly the poster man for rose-tinted glasses. However, he is reasonable and far from delusional. More than a hundred years later and though daily life has changed, his writings still read well.
So, all in all, a good book. I enjoyed traveling through his Japan.
Read
June 15, 2015Me encanta como escriben estos viejitos. El gil lleva 32 páginas disculpándose por escribir el libro.
Una vez terminado, bastante cursi pero divertido. Le sigue faltando el encanto de Will Durant pero este tipo esta igual de enamorado de Japon que james Clavell..
Una vez terminado, bastante cursi pero divertido. Le sigue faltando el encanto de Will Durant pero este tipo esta igual de enamorado de Japon que james Clavell..
July 29, 2017
Fascinating, if long and a little antiquated in style. Hearn is such an engaging writer, so curious and open and charmed by everything he encounters, that the book is a pleasure to read. I lived for over four years in Japan, and found Hearn accurate and informative. Love his ghost stories, too.
August 1, 2017
It's really a three and a half. His descriptions of the shrines and deities of Japan brought them alive, but I did get a little tired by the end.
What swung me over to a four was that I was really sick while I was reading it, and apparently there is a God of Really Bad Colds. I can relate.
What swung me over to a four was that I was really sick while I was reading it, and apparently there is a God of Really Bad Colds. I can relate.
March 15, 2014
Not what I expected from this book. A lot of emphasis on the role of religion and visiting different temples. Would have liked to know what everyday life was like instead.
November 2, 2025
The book is really two books in one, with the first half being about his experience when he first arrived to when he moved to Matsue and the experiences around the area that followed. The second part is a collection of some of his writings, and although still grounded within the vicinity of Matsue, are less travel writing (though there is fair share of it, with the chapter Hōki to Oki being the exemplary case), than his thoughts about Japan and Japanese culture in the late 19th Century, a few decades after the Meiji Restoration.
Hearn provides us with a record of a past long gone, and an insight into the world of 19th Century Japan. He is a fine writer, and highly descriptive of things that he pay attention to. From the types and sounds of the semi (Cicadas), to his journey around the cliffs and headlands, to his attendance at a market festival and his trip to Oki, everything is described in wonderful detail. One would feel as if they were in that time and space, and a testimony to his absorbing his writing is.
It was also somehow surreal to see someone write about Japan before modernity overtook the entire island, before the rise of fascism, the road to war, defeat and subsequent resurrection from the devastation. This is especially so in his praise of his students being willing to lay down their lives for the Emperor - shades of things to come in away that Hearn would not have approved.
He was definitely a bit of a Japanophile, taken by his newfound home, and being I think somewhat overly generous in his characterisation of the Japanese people. That said, I don’t think he is actually guilty of Orientalism (in the sense of Edward Said’s use of the term). Rather he is quite progressive for his time, being able to admit the faults and differences of where he came from (the Occidental comes up quite a bit) and being able to appreciate where the so-called Orient does better and on its own terms, and not reduce it to the caricature of how noble the Orient is et al. Indeed his castigation of foreigners being high-handed and arrogant in their interactions with the Japanese in that chapter “The Japanese Smile” made me forget momentarily that was someone originally of the West. That said I do think he was very taken by Japanese culture and the people, and thus have a tendency to underplay or overlook the issues that existed.
But while that aspect does run through the book, it does not detract from how engrossing his writing is. I can still see how relevant the book and themes are to modern Japan in 2025, particularly in terms of the cultural aspects that he wrote about (the chapter “Ghost and Goblins” where he covered a haunted house and the night market could easily be encountered in modern day Japan).
All in all, I felt it was a terrific read, though the length of time I took to do so may suggest otherwise. I happen to be reading a few books at this time when I started on it. I basically covered 2/3s of the book within the last one week. Highly recommended to anyone with an interest in the culture, geography and history of Japan.
Hearn provides us with a record of a past long gone, and an insight into the world of 19th Century Japan. He is a fine writer, and highly descriptive of things that he pay attention to. From the types and sounds of the semi (Cicadas), to his journey around the cliffs and headlands, to his attendance at a market festival and his trip to Oki, everything is described in wonderful detail. One would feel as if they were in that time and space, and a testimony to his absorbing his writing is.
It was also somehow surreal to see someone write about Japan before modernity overtook the entire island, before the rise of fascism, the road to war, defeat and subsequent resurrection from the devastation. This is especially so in his praise of his students being willing to lay down their lives for the Emperor - shades of things to come in away that Hearn would not have approved.
He was definitely a bit of a Japanophile, taken by his newfound home, and being I think somewhat overly generous in his characterisation of the Japanese people. That said, I don’t think he is actually guilty of Orientalism (in the sense of Edward Said’s use of the term). Rather he is quite progressive for his time, being able to admit the faults and differences of where he came from (the Occidental comes up quite a bit) and being able to appreciate where the so-called Orient does better and on its own terms, and not reduce it to the caricature of how noble the Orient is et al. Indeed his castigation of foreigners being high-handed and arrogant in their interactions with the Japanese in that chapter “The Japanese Smile” made me forget momentarily that was someone originally of the West. That said I do think he was very taken by Japanese culture and the people, and thus have a tendency to underplay or overlook the issues that existed.
But while that aspect does run through the book, it does not detract from how engrossing his writing is. I can still see how relevant the book and themes are to modern Japan in 2025, particularly in terms of the cultural aspects that he wrote about (the chapter “Ghost and Goblins” where he covered a haunted house and the night market could easily be encountered in modern day Japan).
All in all, I felt it was a terrific read, though the length of time I took to do so may suggest otherwise. I happen to be reading a few books at this time when I started on it. I basically covered 2/3s of the book within the last one week. Highly recommended to anyone with an interest in the culture, geography and history of Japan.
June 5, 2024
Lafcadio Hearn is a fascinating figure to me. I first knew him as the collector and translator of traditional Japanese ghost stories from Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things (1904). Three of his stories were adapted by Masaki Kobayashi in his impressive 1964 film Kwaidan. Then it came to my attention that he was one of the early “explainers” of Japanese culture with books like Kokoro: Hints & Echoes of Japanese Inner Life (1896), which I read out of order since it comes after this, Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan (1894), his first book. But in between, I learned that he had several careers prior to Japan living and writing about life in the US and Caribbean. I first heard about his American writings in the first episode of David Simon’s New Orleans based TV series Treme. He is quoted by the university history professor in a class. Further research revealed that Hern had been a crime reporter after immigrating to Cincinnati from England in 1869 where he became a writer for Cincinnati Daily Enquirer. It was from this experience that I read Inventing New Orleans: Writings of Lafcadio Hearn edited by S. Frederick Starr before my first visit there. From there he moved to New Orleans where he lived for nearly a decade, which was followed by two years in Martinique (where he wrote two books) before landing in Japan.
The edition of Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan from Tuttle Classics that I read is said to have included two volumes in one. It includes a variety of essays ranging from personal experiences (“My First Day in the Orient,” “From the Diary of an English Teacher”) to travel (“A Pilgrimage to Enoshima,” “Kitzuki: The Most Ancient Shrine in Japan,” “In the Cave of Children’s Ghosts,” “At Minoseki,” “At Hinomisaki,” and “From Hoki too Oki.”) and explanations of aspects of Japanese culture (“The Writing of Kobodaishi,” “Jizo,” “Bon-Odori,” “Shinju,” “Kitsune,” “Ina Japanese Garden,” “Of Women’s Hair,” “Two Strange Festivals,” “of a Dancing-Girl,” “Of Souls,” “Of Ghosts and Goblins,” and “The Japanese Smile”). Some of these descriptions and explanations seem very much out of date, however some still seem valid today. Furthermore, anyone who has read his writing on Japan can see that he is impressed and respectful of the new and different culture in the distant land where he would eventually be buried.
The edition of Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan from Tuttle Classics that I read is said to have included two volumes in one. It includes a variety of essays ranging from personal experiences (“My First Day in the Orient,” “From the Diary of an English Teacher”) to travel (“A Pilgrimage to Enoshima,” “Kitzuki: The Most Ancient Shrine in Japan,” “In the Cave of Children’s Ghosts,” “At Minoseki,” “At Hinomisaki,” and “From Hoki too Oki.”) and explanations of aspects of Japanese culture (“The Writing of Kobodaishi,” “Jizo,” “Bon-Odori,” “Shinju,” “Kitsune,” “Ina Japanese Garden,” “Of Women’s Hair,” “Two Strange Festivals,” “of a Dancing-Girl,” “Of Souls,” “Of Ghosts and Goblins,” and “The Japanese Smile”). Some of these descriptions and explanations seem very much out of date, however some still seem valid today. Furthermore, anyone who has read his writing on Japan can see that he is impressed and respectful of the new and different culture in the distant land where he would eventually be buried.
May 27, 2026
Ask anyone on the street where they would like to visit, and the answer is invariably Japan. For better and for worse, the land comprised of around fourteen thousand islands seems to hold an endless charm for Westerners.
Hearn was one of those enthralled outsiders, a man of Greek-Irish lineage who found his home in Japan, passing his final years with his wife and child, feeling a sense of belonging that had seemingly eluded him in his younger years. His journey is still relevant today: a love letter to a people and their culture, and a tale of fantasy versus reality – that dizzying cocktail of what Japan is and what we want it to be.
Hearn wrote detailed notes about everything, and he took to his new life with gusto. He was a proto-Bill Bryson, offering insights to would-be travellers from his own time. Reading it now, well over a century later, it is a gorgeous time capsule of a gone-by era. Which is apt, as Hearn was preoccupied greatly with the sense that Japan was losing its essence as it modernized and opened to the West. (Something that has echoes in modern Japanese politics.)
His enthusiasm is infectious. When he wants to buy everything in tourist shops, he is relatable. And as his narrative starts with breathless brush strokes of this new, alien society, before giving way to a more useful and considered approach, we accompany him as he settles in and integrates.
Through our erstwhile narrator, we learn about the plots of long-forgotten plays, the superstition around foxes (and much more), travelling carnival shows where the ‘world’s largest rat’ was actually a kangaroo, and wind-up toys that sang and moved. In between the many myths, there are accounts of fading samurai, lost in a modernizing world, and the grim fate of retired geishas, women sold into servitude and then abandoned in their golden years.
Nevertheless, this detailed approach doesn’t always work – a barrage of placenames and myths can sometimes tire the reader as anecdotes and observations blend together. This is ‘unfamiliar’ Japan after all, and there are no SparkNotes. Occasional footnotes add some context, but even they can extend across a couple of pages as they are dense with information.
There is too much in the book to mention. There are stories of besotted men enlisting priests so they could find out if their love was reciprocated. The spirit of the woman would take over the priest’s body and speak through him. There is a whole essay about the differences between a Japanese and European garden.
And then, there is Hearn himself. In many places, he drew crowds of hundreds. In hotels, heads would pop into his room and gently observe him, before popping out again. (We learn that there is little privacy in Japanese hotels.) On the street and in restaurants, he was a sensation, but the crowd always treated him with deference and respect.
The behaviour of Japanese people throughout the book, according to Hearn, is exemplary. Even rough sailors cause little disruption, unlike their European counterparts.
From The Simpsons to blogs by Japanese air hostesses and beyond, the idea of the enigmatic Japanese smile has provided much fodder for conversation and reflection. In Glimpses of Unknown Japan, Hearn was specifically tasked by a friend to work out why the ‘natives’ smiled so much.
「As an aside, Hearn had links to Ireland but spent little time there. In fact, he belonged to the British ruling class, so many of his contemporaries in Japan were from Britain, and some carried with them a sneering disregard for the locals.」
Across three genuinely shocking anecdotes, Hearn showed how two English gentlemen and one gentlewoman, by turns, drove an ageing samurai to hara-kiri, laughed at a recent widow holding an urn, and smashed a peasant on the head with a whip handle. All because the serene smiles of the Japanese person in front of them provoked an irrational ire.
Hearn wrote an in-depth essay delineating the reasons for the so-called Japanese smile. To condense his thoughts, he attributes this sanguine inscrutability to Confucism and an overriding desire to maintain social cohesion. Things one can read about today when Googling Japanese business etiquette.
Despite Hearn’s 19th-century biases, he was more open than most of his countrymen. The reprinted letter from his students shows a real sadness at his departure, and the fact that students, teachers and parents escorted him to his steamer ship – ahead of his relocation to another part of Japan – denotes a certain sense of love and respect… unless they were happy to see the back of him.
As mentioned, the book has its peculiarities. He never references his wife, but the pretty girls from different prefectures find their way into the pages. An anachronistic celebration of militarism and manhood sometimes creeps in; a reminder that some shadows exist in the Land of the Rising Sun. But overall, the delights and awe that flesh out the story make for a mostly engaging read. Even if you can’t distinguish between samurai and sushi, and you are one of those rare people who is not a Japanophile, there is still something to enjoy in this two-volume collection.
Hearn was one of those enthralled outsiders, a man of Greek-Irish lineage who found his home in Japan, passing his final years with his wife and child, feeling a sense of belonging that had seemingly eluded him in his younger years. His journey is still relevant today: a love letter to a people and their culture, and a tale of fantasy versus reality – that dizzying cocktail of what Japan is and what we want it to be.
Hearn wrote detailed notes about everything, and he took to his new life with gusto. He was a proto-Bill Bryson, offering insights to would-be travellers from his own time. Reading it now, well over a century later, it is a gorgeous time capsule of a gone-by era. Which is apt, as Hearn was preoccupied greatly with the sense that Japan was losing its essence as it modernized and opened to the West. (Something that has echoes in modern Japanese politics.)
His enthusiasm is infectious. When he wants to buy everything in tourist shops, he is relatable. And as his narrative starts with breathless brush strokes of this new, alien society, before giving way to a more useful and considered approach, we accompany him as he settles in and integrates.
Through our erstwhile narrator, we learn about the plots of long-forgotten plays, the superstition around foxes (and much more), travelling carnival shows where the ‘world’s largest rat’ was actually a kangaroo, and wind-up toys that sang and moved. In between the many myths, there are accounts of fading samurai, lost in a modernizing world, and the grim fate of retired geishas, women sold into servitude and then abandoned in their golden years.
Nevertheless, this detailed approach doesn’t always work – a barrage of placenames and myths can sometimes tire the reader as anecdotes and observations blend together. This is ‘unfamiliar’ Japan after all, and there are no SparkNotes. Occasional footnotes add some context, but even they can extend across a couple of pages as they are dense with information.
There is too much in the book to mention. There are stories of besotted men enlisting priests so they could find out if their love was reciprocated. The spirit of the woman would take over the priest’s body and speak through him. There is a whole essay about the differences between a Japanese and European garden.
And then, there is Hearn himself. In many places, he drew crowds of hundreds. In hotels, heads would pop into his room and gently observe him, before popping out again. (We learn that there is little privacy in Japanese hotels.) On the street and in restaurants, he was a sensation, but the crowd always treated him with deference and respect.
The behaviour of Japanese people throughout the book, according to Hearn, is exemplary. Even rough sailors cause little disruption, unlike their European counterparts.
From The Simpsons to blogs by Japanese air hostesses and beyond, the idea of the enigmatic Japanese smile has provided much fodder for conversation and reflection. In Glimpses of Unknown Japan, Hearn was specifically tasked by a friend to work out why the ‘natives’ smiled so much.
「As an aside, Hearn had links to Ireland but spent little time there. In fact, he belonged to the British ruling class, so many of his contemporaries in Japan were from Britain, and some carried with them a sneering disregard for the locals.」
Across three genuinely shocking anecdotes, Hearn showed how two English gentlemen and one gentlewoman, by turns, drove an ageing samurai to hara-kiri, laughed at a recent widow holding an urn, and smashed a peasant on the head with a whip handle. All because the serene smiles of the Japanese person in front of them provoked an irrational ire.
Hearn wrote an in-depth essay delineating the reasons for the so-called Japanese smile. To condense his thoughts, he attributes this sanguine inscrutability to Confucism and an overriding desire to maintain social cohesion. Things one can read about today when Googling Japanese business etiquette.
Despite Hearn’s 19th-century biases, he was more open than most of his countrymen. The reprinted letter from his students shows a real sadness at his departure, and the fact that students, teachers and parents escorted him to his steamer ship – ahead of his relocation to another part of Japan – denotes a certain sense of love and respect… unless they were happy to see the back of him.
As mentioned, the book has its peculiarities. He never references his wife, but the pretty girls from different prefectures find their way into the pages. An anachronistic celebration of militarism and manhood sometimes creeps in; a reminder that some shadows exist in the Land of the Rising Sun. But overall, the delights and awe that flesh out the story make for a mostly engaging read. Even if you can’t distinguish between samurai and sushi, and you are one of those rare people who is not a Japanophile, there is still something to enjoy in this two-volume collection.
September 11, 2026
The prose took me a bit to understand. It was older than I was used to, however his observations were wonderful. Even today, I can’t see the same Japanese he saw, the one’s who laugh when they make a mistake, the ones who give a gift expecting nothing in return. That said, I’ve also seen a Japan where people are rude and care nothing but what the world can give them.
The thing that surprised me the most was his observations about the students, how the memorize everything and use that to express themselves. That is still the case today more than a hundred years later.
The thing that surprised me the most was his observations about the students, how the memorize everything and use that to express themselves. That is still the case today more than a hundred years later.
July 23, 2021
Lyrical and I enjoyed it a lot. I have been studying Japan for several years now in preparation to go and spend some extended time on Kyushu. This book come at the POV of experiencing Japan like a newcomer and trying to capture the first impressions and what is striking.
December 1, 2020
I enjoyed this book. It took some getting used to. It is in no hurry to describe Japan culture.
When I finally decided to sit back and enjoy to descriptions, it was a pleasure.
When I finally decided to sit back and enjoy to descriptions, it was a pleasure.
January 29, 2021
A Western outsider view of Japanese culture, widely-ranging and vividly portrayed. Of great interest to anyone wishing to observe Japan before the arrival of the modern era.
July 13, 2023
An absolutely amazing look at aJapanese way of life that was fading already at the time was fading away.
June 9, 2026
This book is a treasure. It's hundreds of pages of firsthand accounts of Japanese history, culture, and myth. I've spent many years in Japan and was raised by a Japanese mother, so I was surprised to find some amazing stories in here that I've never heard before and that I will not soon forget. From fox demons and Jizo to ancient samurai and geisha legends. It is written in short essays, which made it somewhat of a slog for me, but setting the style aside, it provided great incites into the culture and unforgettable stories that moved me deeply.
June 17, 2016
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan (Paperback)
by Lafcadio Hearn 4/5
by Lafcadio Hearn 4/5
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews