Review:

Reconstructing 3/11: Earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown - how Japan's future depends on its understanding of the 2011 triple disaster

Jake Adelstein (Author), Michael Cucek (Author), Kiyoshi Kurokawa (Author), Philip Brasor (Author), Our Man in Abiko (Editor), Sandra Barron (Editor), Dan Ryan (Editor)

 

Apart form being a great example of the possibilities of independent eBook publishing, a phenomenon which we will undoubtedly see more of in the future, this book offers a honest and down-to-earth collection of thoughts and opinions on Japan, one year on after disaster set in motion by the Great Tohoku Earthquake of 2011.

Consisting of eight essays written by journalists, Japan experts and NGO/NPO actives, many who are also active bloggers, the book is an easy read in form, contrasting with the seriousness of the content. It manages to raise important points about politics, the media, society and economics in post-disaster Japan, while not getting overly technical in doing so.

For someone actively following Japan-related blogs some of the authors may be familiar, and some of the contents has appeared in various blogs during the year that's passed since the Great Tohoku Earthquake. The strenght of collecting this material into one book is that it gives the reader a concise and varied overview of the situation japan finds itself in one year after the triple disaster; At the beginning of a long road of reconstruction, recovery and rethinking of some basics of society.

Highlights include a fascinating insiders account on the crucial role played by the Yakuza in the first chaotic days of the disaster, a refreshing take on the often confusing and outwardly petty domestic politics hindering progress, as well as reports on the grassroots movements taking over where official organisations fail to act quickly enough, if at all.

Reconstructing 3/11 offers the reader insight and opinions from people on the ground, with hands-on experience of the challenges overcome and the ones still faced. In reading the book someone not actively following events in Japan is offered what at best feels like a  behind-the-scenes look on events like no mainstream media outlet can deliver. Highly recommended.

Reconstructing 3/11: Earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown - how Japan's future depends on its understanding of the 2011 triple disaster

Copyright © Mikael Leppä, 2012