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Alien Rice
In this perceptive novel of interracial marriage, the author of Japan Unmasked exposes the harsh realities and strange contradictions of life in modern Japan.
152 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1973
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 10, 2014
I'm giving this two stars as opposed to one because it's kind of interesting historical document--not that it is true in any way, shape, or form, but that it reflects a lot of beliefs held by people. The dialog is horrible and unnatural, and the relationship between the husband and wife was so superficial. The guy really did not know what he was writing about.
Plus there were some factual mistakes. A British woman would not be automatically given Japanese citizenship just because she married a Japanese man. Since he was a diplomat (the former Ambassador to Argentina who was asked to resign for writing obnoxious things about Japanese), you'd think he would have known that.
He certainly has an axe to grind concerning salary men and companies in the 1960s--but I wonder if he actually knew anything about that either. Considering what he said about international marriage--I wonder if he was wrong about company life and salary men as well.
Plus there were some factual mistakes. A British woman would not be automatically given Japanese citizenship just because she married a Japanese man. Since he was a diplomat (the former Ambassador to Argentina who was asked to resign for writing obnoxious things about Japanese), you'd think he would have known that.
He certainly has an axe to grind concerning salary men and companies in the 1960s--but I wonder if he actually knew anything about that either. Considering what he said about international marriage--I wonder if he was wrong about company life and salary men as well.
March 7, 2024
Pathetic and absurd. The story line is ridiculous, the characters inexpressive if uncultured. And guess what, to make matters absolutely awkward, the English style is disconcertingly abnormal. One can only stand astonished that such a work was ever published. What, one marvels at is the author’s exact point here. Is the author saying that every single person on the planet is equally aggressive, undependable and a straight-faced idiot? Can you beat that?
November 5, 2017
1 star for literary value (which is virtually nil) and another for its status as historical oddity.
February 12, 2023
This book has dated very badly, unfortunately. The story only really serves as a device for the author to espouse his extremely negative views about the workings of Japanese business.
January 30, 2025
Meh. Storyline didn't make sense and the characters weren't even likable. Just a bunch of stereotypes.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews