Reprint of the original, first published in 1876.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1871.

The Floating World by novelist James A. Michener is a classic work on the Japanese print of the Edo period (1615-1868). Mr. Michener shows how the Japanese printmakers, cut off from revivifying contacts with the art of the rest of the world and hampered by their own governmental restrictions, were able to keep their art vital for two centuries through their vigor and determination. For this new edition, Howard A. Link updates the scholarship and expands on many theoretical aspects introduced in Michener's study.

For generations, children’s books provided American readers with their first impressions of Japan. Seemingly authoritative, and full of fascinating details about daily life in a distant land, these publications often presented a mixture of facts, stereotypes, and complete fabrications. This volume takes readers on a journey through nearly 200 years of American children’s books depicting Japanese culture, starting with the illustrated journal of a boy who accompanied Commodore Matthew Perry on his historic voyage in the 1850s. Along the way, it traces the important role that representations of Japan played in the evolution of children’s literature, including the early works of Edward Stratemeyer, who went on to create such iconic characters as Nancy Drew. It also considers how American children’s books about Japan have gradually become more realistic with more Japanese-American authors entering the field, and with texts grappling with such serious subjects as internment camps and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Drawing from the Library of Congress’s massive collection, Sybille A. Jagusch presents long passages from many different types of Japanese-themed children’s books and periodicals—including travelogues, histories, rare picture books, folktale collections, and boys’ adventure stories—to give readers a fascinating look at these striking texts. Published by Rutgers University Press, in association with the Library of Congress.

"One of the first and in many ways still one of the best books on Japan." --The Japan Times First published in 1871, Tales of Old Japan has withstood the test of time and taken its place as one of the classic volumes of Japanese literature. The book presents a broad cross section of Japanese prose—historical tales like the famous story of the Forty–seven Ronin; nonfiction reporting on marriage, funerals and the author's gory eyewitness account of hara–kiri; fairy tales and stories of superstition featuring vampire cats and magic foxes; even three sermons written by a priest belonging to the Shingaku sect, which professes to combine Buddhist, Confucian and Shinto teachings. The books thirty–three chapters cover practically every sector of Japanese life. Thirty–one reproductions of woodblock prints illustrate the various tales and essays. Author Robert Louis Stevenson cited Tales of Old Japan in his essay "Books Which Have Influenced Me." Over a hundred years have passed since Stevenson justly praised A.B. Mitford's book, but his work remains an important and fascinating sourcebook on Japan and the Japanese.