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Live From Japan!: Anecdotes on the People and Culture of Contemporary Japan from the Perspective on an American Expat
This is a captivating, heart-warming, funny, and informative look at contemporary Japan, through the eyes of an American expat. John Rachel arrived for his first visit to Japan 13 years ago, is now married to a brilliant Japanese lady — a music teacher, concert pianist, opera singer — and has lived in Japan permanently for over eight years.
This book is a collection of sixty-three anecdotes about the Land of the Rising Sun, its people, culture, traditions, and institutions. It includes over 450 photographs of a side of Japan which will amaze and charm you.
This book is a collection of sixty-three anecdotes about the Land of the Rising Sun, its people, culture, traditions, and institutions. It includes over 450 photographs of a side of Japan which will amaze and charm you.
Kindle Edition
Published February 14, 2021
9 people want to read
About the author
John Rachel
21 books581 followersJohn Rachel has a B. A. in Philosophy, has traveled extensively, is a songwriter and music producer, and an evolutionary humanist. He has spent his life trying to resolve the intrinsic clash between the metaphysical purity of Buddhism and the overwhelming appeal of narcissism.
Author Rachel has written ten novels, and eight non-fiction books. He has also had over 40 short stories, 9 poems, and over 200 political articles published in both print and online magazines.
He has traveled through and lived in 35 countries since leaving America August of 2006, but is now settled in a small traditional farming village in Japan near Osaka. His next project, as he slumps in a hammock he purchased in Vietnam and waits for the Good Ship Lollipop to appear on the horizon, is a anthropological novel about the worship and eating of giraffes, set in sub-Saharan 18th Century Africa. It is mostly the product of the voices in his head which have plagued him since puberty, a biological transition that occurred when he was 34 and working on a chain gang in Arkansas. He was at the time serving a 10-year sentence for destroying the do-not-remove label from a pillowcase he bought at a yard sale.
Author Rachel has recently published two books. One is a fantasy/travel/cookbook called "What Do Mermaids Eat?" The other is political manifesto called "War Is Making Us Poor!: Militarism Is Destroying the US".
The author’s last permanent residence in America was Portland, Oregon where he had a state-of-the-art ProTools recording studio, music production house, a radio promotion and music publishing company. He recorded and produced several artists in the Pacific Northwest, releasing and promoting their music on radio across America and overseas.
John Rachel now lives in a quiet, traditional, rural Japanese community, where he sets his non-existent watch by the thrice-daily ringing of temple bells, at a local Shinto shrine. These days, he's mostly immersed in good vibrations.
Author Rachel has written ten novels, and eight non-fiction books. He has also had over 40 short stories, 9 poems, and over 200 political articles published in both print and online magazines.
He has traveled through and lived in 35 countries since leaving America August of 2006, but is now settled in a small traditional farming village in Japan near Osaka. His next project, as he slumps in a hammock he purchased in Vietnam and waits for the Good Ship Lollipop to appear on the horizon, is a anthropological novel about the worship and eating of giraffes, set in sub-Saharan 18th Century Africa. It is mostly the product of the voices in his head which have plagued him since puberty, a biological transition that occurred when he was 34 and working on a chain gang in Arkansas. He was at the time serving a 10-year sentence for destroying the do-not-remove label from a pillowcase he bought at a yard sale.
Author Rachel has recently published two books. One is a fantasy/travel/cookbook called "What Do Mermaids Eat?" The other is political manifesto called "War Is Making Us Poor!: Militarism Is Destroying the US".
The author’s last permanent residence in America was Portland, Oregon where he had a state-of-the-art ProTools recording studio, music production house, a radio promotion and music publishing company. He recorded and produced several artists in the Pacific Northwest, releasing and promoting their music on radio across America and overseas.
John Rachel now lives in a quiet, traditional, rural Japanese community, where he sets his non-existent watch by the thrice-daily ringing of temple bells, at a local Shinto shrine. These days, he's mostly immersed in good vibrations.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 17, 2021
The author of “Live in Japan!” once told me that this work is something like a coffee-table book, but I think it’s much more than that. The book is comprised not only of personal anecdotes about Japan, along with many beautiful color photos that highlight the topics he explores, but also personal insights to aspects of the culture that have come to stand out for him after living in Sasamayama, a small farming community in Hyogo prefecture, for over a decade now. At times very witty, at other times quite insightful, and at still other times silly and self-deprecating, the book was pleasurable to read – especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has kept me from visiting Japan for nearly two years now.
December 1, 2020
I received an advance review copy of the ebook, then the paperback. I loaned the paperback to a friend, and now I can't get it back! It's not a tourist guide, but you might be tempted to go and you'd find it useful. It's not a memoir, but John Rachel lets you into his personal and private life through engaging narrative. It's not a scrapbook, but it's full of colorful snaps. And local color. And if you're sheltering at home, flipping through it will expand your horizons and brighten your outlook!
March 1, 2021
Live From Japan: Anecdotes on the People and Culture of Contemporary Japanese
This was an interesting book and I would recommend it to any one who wants an interesting read. I look forward to reading more of this authors work.
This was an interesting book and I would recommend it to any one who wants an interesting read. I look forward to reading more of this authors work.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews