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Review
Fluent in the language, well-informed and disabused, [Booth] is in the fine tradition of hard-to-please travellers like Norman Douglas, Evelyn Waugh, and V.S. Naipaul. A sharp eye and a good memory for detail...give an astonishing immediacy to his account. --Times Literary Supplement<br /><br />An illuminating book. --The Economist
An illuminating book. --The Economist
An illuminating book. --The Economist
Product Description
Although Alan Booth was a city person (he was brought up in London and spent most of his adult life in Tokyo) he had an extraordinary ability to capture the feel of rural Japan in his writing. Throughout his long and arduous trek, Booth encountered a variety of people who inhabit the Japanese countryside, from fishermen and soldiers, to bar hostesses and school teachers, to hermits, drunks and tramps. His wonderful and often hilarious descriptions of these encounters are the highlights of these pages, painting a multifaceted picture of Japan from the perspective of an outsider, but with the knowledge of an insider. The Roads to Sata is travel writing at its best: illuminating and disarming, poignant yet hilarious, critical but respectful. Travelling across Japan with Alan Booth, readers will enjoy the wit and insight of a uniquely perceptive guide, and more importantly, they will discover a new face of an often misunderstood nation.
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It was late in June so most of Japan was dripping and gray-the rainy season was at its height. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
It was late in June so most of Japan was dripping and gray-the rainy season was at its height. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The late Alan Booth was one of a relatively small number of foreigners to adopt Japan as his home. He was a fluent speaker of the language and well versed in many aspects of Japanese culture and history. As such he was well qualified to write a book about Japan and he avoids the cliches of oriental inscrutability so common to critiques of Japanese culture. The structure is suggested by the title - with the exception of a few trips by boat Booth walks from the northernmost point of Japan on Hokkaido to the southernmost point of the island of Kyushu. The route he takes is mainly a rural one - Booth consciously avoids the urban sprawl of Tokyo. Booth is clearly fascinated by the minutiae of life in small-town Japan, and his ability to speak fluent dialect, sing traditional enka karaoke music and imbibe copious amounts of beer and sake is the passport to many entertaining encounters along the way. Booth is easily the literary equal of Bill Bryson or Paul Theroux. In common with Bryson he manages to turn the telling of minor details and anecdotes into a fascinating narrative whole. The reader really gets an insight into Booth's experiences as a foreigner in Japan. His affection for Japan and the Japanese is mixed with frustration that he is so often treated as an outsider despite having lived in Japan for most of his adult life. This can take the benevolent form of people who fuss and take pains to treat him as an honoured guest. Sometimes it is manifested in less pleasant forms as he is refused lodgings or otherwise discriminated against. For anyone who has visited Japan, and especially for those who have lived there for any length of time, Booth's book will probably articulate so many of the things that make Japan so special (and sometimes infuriating). For those that have not, The Roads to Sata is a great piece of travel writing in its own right and will have you itching to go and see Japan for yourself.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Alan Booth's talent - greatly missed with his all too early passing - was not just to write in a clear and entertaining style, but also to avoid generalising or romanticising his Japanese experience. He spent enough time living in the country and spoke Japanese well enough to have a very good level of insight, but also to appreciate that there were some aspects of life that he might never understand. The Roads to Sata is an absolute 'must read' for anyone with an interest in Japan and is one of the best pieces of travel writing that I have ever read. It will leave you wishing that his career was much longer and more productive.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Writing about Japan seems to be like walking a thin tight rope. Read Amazon reviews of other Japan books and you'll find that many authors get criticised - either for being too negative towards Japan - or the complete opposite; viewing the country in a blissful state of wonder.
Booth's account of his journey walking from the north of Hokkaido to the south of Kyushu is a little different. He passes through the country, closely observing its smallest details and quirks, largely of rural life, reporting what he sees, smells, hears and feels on his journey, but rarely does Booth judge the Japanese.
His account is very well written; funny in some parts, graceful and poetic in others. Anyone who has spent extended time in Japan will knowingly nod and chuckle, recognising many of the traits, situations and irritations that he alludes to.
My one small criticism of the book is also what seems to have endeared it to so many reviewers; Booth's aptitude to objectively report, rather than asses, the things he experiences means that those with less knowledge of the country may be left a little in the dark at times.
There are certainly parts when a little more explanation would have been helpful. Especially as Booth (RIP) was so well qualified to do so - being fluent in the language and having lived in Japan for 7 years at the time of writing.
However, it seems that his unwillingness to judge his hosts too heavily is why this book has been so well received, and continues to be, even though it was first published back in 1985.
I wonder how much of the rural charm that Booth captured so well, has now faded into history, twenty five years on since he made his journey?
I like to think that the innkeepers, bear hunters and fisherman that Booth speaks of are still going about their rural ways, keeping this charming side to Japan alive.
Overall, Roads to Sata is a well painted, funny and realistic portrait of Japan, and probably the most enjoyable book I have yet read on the country.
Booth's account of his journey walking from the north of Hokkaido to the south of Kyushu is a little different. He passes through the country, closely observing its smallest details and quirks, largely of rural life, reporting what he sees, smells, hears and feels on his journey, but rarely does Booth judge the Japanese.
His account is very well written; funny in some parts, graceful and poetic in others. Anyone who has spent extended time in Japan will knowingly nod and chuckle, recognising many of the traits, situations and irritations that he alludes to.
My one small criticism of the book is also what seems to have endeared it to so many reviewers; Booth's aptitude to objectively report, rather than asses, the things he experiences means that those with less knowledge of the country may be left a little in the dark at times.
There are certainly parts when a little more explanation would have been helpful. Especially as Booth (RIP) was so well qualified to do so - being fluent in the language and having lived in Japan for 7 years at the time of writing.
However, it seems that his unwillingness to judge his hosts too heavily is why this book has been so well received, and continues to be, even though it was first published back in 1985.
I wonder how much of the rural charm that Booth captured so well, has now faded into history, twenty five years on since he made his journey?
I like to think that the innkeepers, bear hunters and fisherman that Booth speaks of are still going about their rural ways, keeping this charming side to Japan alive.
Overall, Roads to Sata is a well painted, funny and realistic portrait of Japan, and probably the most enjoyable book I have yet read on the country.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Inspirational...
Alan Booth walked the entire way, alone, from Cape Soya, on the far northern tip of the island of Hokkaido, to Cape Sata, as the title states, at the far southern end of the island... Read more
Published 4 months ago by John P. Jones III
Read before you travel to Japan!
I read this before I travelled to Japan and it made everything so much more understandable. His walk is a great adventure and very inspiring!
Published on 27 Feb 2010 by K. L. Hermanson
A Cynical Journey
The title of this book gives the reader a good idea of what to expect from the content, and true, the author portrays this journey in sometimes delightful detail. Read more
Published on 29 April 2005
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