Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The nitty, gritty truth about the underbelly of Japan, 4 Feb 2002
In Speed Tribes, Greenfeld has captured the essence of contemporary Japan. Forget geisha, kabuki and zen gardens, this is the real Japan that most foreigners don't know about. Greenfeld is by profession a journalist and that comes across strongly in his style. The book is split into 12 chapters which each follow a character or two around to explore their lives. Each of the characters is something new: a yakuza (gangster), a hostess, a right-wing activist, a bosozuku (Speed Tribe) chief, a high-school drop-out, an aspiring Tokyo University student. Through these individuals, and numerous statistics and interview material that only a Japanese speaker could provide, Greenfeld paints a complete and totally accurate picture of the underbelly of Japanese society. Speed Tribes has been attacked by some for being 'unacademic'; my own feeling is that, firstly, it is not meant to be an academic text, yet, secondly, it provides enough supporting material, and so subtly that one is not beleaguered by dull statistics or tangential discussions, that it more than backs up what it has to say. The only people who could dislike this text are those it, by its very existence, exposes and ridicules. As the cliche goes, the truth hurts. The chapter on Tokyo University was particularly enjoyable for me, since it says everything I've been saying about the place since I arrived there four months ago, but says it better. Speed Tribes has masses to offer to any reader, but those who know Japan will enjoy it much more. If you're interested in the truth about Japan.. read this book.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant, realistic, captivating and enjoyable to read., 8 Sep 1999
By A Customer
To think that a reviewer living in Yokohama believed this to be totally unrealistic and a false reflection of what life is really like in Tokyo and Japan is laughable. The reader concerned, if they live in Yokohama is probably stationed at one of the bases in the Yokohama/Kanagawa area and, therefore the only slice of Tokyo life they are likely to see is Roppongi and the inside of various hip hop clubs on a Saturday night when they get released for a brief period. Karl Greenfield has taken some of his experiences in Japan and I believe a lot of them to be very real. I have grown up in a Tokyo suburb since becoming a teenager and have seen many similar things occur in this country. I was very excited when reading it and wanted to recommend it to many of my friends living outside of Japan to let them know that these things do go on in this country yet many foreigners will never hear about any of them as they are only consummed with what occurs in foreigner friendly areas. It is clear that the author has done quite a lot of research into his work and therefore deserves the credit for it as young Japanese people are definitely more likely to reveal these facts and open up to a foreigner than to a Japanese person enquiring on the subject. The realism of this book adds to the excitement, and in my opinion and that of many of my peers the author has unveiled many interesting pieces of information on undiscussed topics.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
No salarymen here, then!, 17 Nov 2004
In the west, we are always told the same old rubbish about Japan: the subservient women in the house, the salaryman working himself to death, schoolgirls flashing their white panties for the amusement of said salarymen... And while I am in no doubt that there is more than just a glimmer of truth in all of these images, the feeling has always been that there has to be something MORE going on there, some subculture or other. And here it is... This book proves it. Here you will find the juvenille delinquents, the motorbike gangs, the office ladies who convert to club kids by night, the porn stars and ultra-nationalist Yakuza surfers. And more. Read this and you will be booking tickets to Tokyo tomorrow!
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