Created specifically for fans of Japanese "cool culture,"
A Geek in Japan
is one of the most iconic, hip, and concise cultural guides available.
This new edition has been thoroughly revised and expanded with new chapters on Japanese video games, architecture, and a special section on visiting Kyoto. Reinvented for the internet age, it's packed with personal essays and hundreds of photographs, presenting all the touchstones of both traditional and contemporary culture in an entirely new way.
The expansive range of topics include:
Bushido, Geisha, Samurai, Shintoism, and Buddhism
Traditional arts and disciplines like Ukiyo—e, Ikebana, Zen meditation, calligraphy, martial arts, and the tea ceremony
Insightful essays on code words and social mores; dating and drinking rituals; working and living conditions and symbols and practices that are peculiarly Japanese
Japanese pop culture genres and their subcultures, like
otaku, gals, visual kei, and cosplay
For visitors, the author includes a mini guide to his favorite neighborhoods in Tokyo as well as tips on special places of interest in other parts of Japan. Garcia has written an irreverent, insightful, and highly informative guide for the growing ranks of Japanophiles around the world.