Countries of the World: Japan

by Lesley Downer, Preben Kristensen (Photographer)

This book on Japan is part of a series which provides young readers with an illustrated introduction to different countries of the world. It examines different aspects of this country with a population of 125 million, describing its long period of isolated development, contrasting it with more recent historical trends and the country's current position as a dominant world economic power. It looks at the landscape, climate, forests and wildlife, and at topics such as education, sport and leisure, religion and festivals, agriculture, industry and government. The author lived for five years in Japan, studying many aspects of Japanese culture. She contributes articles on Japan to newspapers and magazines.

48 pages, Hardcover

First published June 30, 1989

About the author

I write historical fiction set in Japan - women’s untold stories, largely true and based on meticulous and detailed research, though primarily, of course, good yarns. I’ve just finished The Shogun’s Queen, the fourth of The Shogun Quartet, four novels set in the nineteenth century during the tumultuous fifteen years when Japan was convulsed by civil war and transformed from rule by the shoguns into a society that looked to the west.
Preorder: http://bit.ly/TheShogunsQueen
The second, The Last Concubine, was shortlisted for Romantic Novel of the Year 2009 and translated into 30 languages. The other two novels are The Courtesan and the Samurai and The Samurai’s Daughter. My non-fiction on Japan includes Geisha: The Remarkable Truth Behind the Fiction and Madame Sadayakko: The Geisha who Seduced the West. I’m also a journalist and travel writer, give lectures and teach Creative Writing at City University in London.