Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. [Paperback]

Roland Kelts (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 140398476X | ISBN-13: 978-1403984760 | Publication Date: November 13, 2007 | Edition: 1st

Japanamerica is the first book that directly addresses the American experience with the Japanese pop culture craze--including anime from Hayao Miyazaki's epics to the burgeoning world of hentai, or violent pornographic anime to Haruki Murakami's fiction. Including interviews with the inventor of Pac-man and executives from TokyoPop, GDH, and other major Japanese and American production companies, this book highlights the shared conflicts both countries face as anime and manga become a global form of entertainment and change both the United States and Japan in the process.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The influx of Japanese art and fashion into the American cultural mainstream gets an entertaining treatment from Kelts, an essayist and lecturer at the University of Tokyo, who interviewed many of Japan's leading culture gurus over the past three years. Kelts is clearly most interested in the world of anime and manga (from Pokémon to Princess Mononoke), as his readers will most likely be. A primary theme is that of the Japanese paradox: how has such a strictly defined and rigid society produced pop art that is, compared to its American counterparts at least, wildly imaginative and boundary bursting? Kelts's belief is that one directly created the other, that anime and manga's wild and kinetic structures, hyperaddictive apocalyptic story lines and surprisingly emotional content (not to mention sex and violence unheard of in American pop culture) could never flourish in an openly permissive and individualistic society that had not experienced nuclear devastation. Although the book grasps too eagerly at its subject's grander implications, it still effectively conveys the cross-Pacific cultural dissonance. Kelts has a sharp grasp of his subject and is on sure ground when discussing the history of the form, especially the impact of Disney on postwar Japanese animators or the reverential awe in which American animators hold such filmmakers as Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away). (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"[This] tells the incredible story of the way...Japanese entertainment and popular art...continue to grow and draw two very different worlds together."--Pete Townshend, The Who

"Embrace the world of otaku in Roland Kelts' comprehensive study of how Japanese pop culture enchanted the West, from Speed Racer and Pokémon to cosplay and hentai manga."--Wired

"If you wish to understand the nuances of otaku-dom, or are just hentai-curious, Japanamerica is a broad primer" --The Village Voice

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan; 1st edition (November 13, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 140398476X
• ISBN-13: 978-1403984760
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #270,465 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Roland Kelts, half-Japanese American writer, editor and lecturer, lives half of each year in Tokyo and New York. He is the author of "Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture has Invaded the US," writes about contemporary Japan for several publications in the US and Japan, and is a frequent commentator on Japan for National Public Radio and the BBC. His forthcoming novel is called "Access."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, February 7, 2007

By 

Alex Carson (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. (Hardcover)

I read this book after a Village Voice critic called it "a Wired Magazine article on steroids," and Ain't It Cool News said that it was "an imperative resource." Then Bookforum called it "an amazing ride," and The Boston Globe raved.
Then: Even Pete Townshend of The Who endorsed it!
I am skeptical of books trying to capitalize on trends, and very skeptical of books on Japan. But the chorus of praise from so many different voices was enough for me.
This book is written in lucid, carefully crafted prose--telling you everything you need to know about transcultural entertainment and the psychological and spiritual traumas embedded in pop culture, and also precisely what makes Japan so sexy to Westerners in the 21st Century. It is also hip and smart, and very accessible. I only wished it were longer.
The author is no geek, but a writer of considerable talent and range. Get Japanamericaa now.

20 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beyond Anime, December 28, 2006

By 

William Hagen (Cambridge, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. (Hardcover)

Americans like to think that our culture sets the standard for the rest of the world; however, Kelts takes us beyond our narrow cultural lens to understand the pervasive influence of Japanese aesthetics on the US. Kelts has an engaging and provocative writing style that educates and entertains. This book will satisfy a wide group of readers, including students of popular culture, Japanophiles, and "otaku." As a member of the first group, I couldn't put it down.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, perhaps overreaching, June 5, 2009

By 

John E. Vidale "conventional Earth scientist" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. (Paperback)

I bought this book after seeing the author speak at the 2009 anime festival in Seattle. He has a significant and enlightening story to tell about the emergence of anime and manga in America. He describes how the American version is distinct from the original, and which personalities made it what it is today.

I found the first half fascinating, the next quarter interesting, and the final quarter of the book difficult to digest and even harder to gain much credence. Personally, I think anime is what it is, and where it goes next cannot be predicted. By the end, I also thought, for all its elegance and fascination, anime is more attitude than it is substance.

Nevertheless, this major cultural movement defies casual inspection, and this book is an excellent guide for the inquisitive.