Synopsis:
From the only American journalist ever to have been admitted to the insular Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club: a unique, firsthand, revelatory look at Japanese culture from the underbelly up.

At nineteen, Jake Adelstein went to Japan in search of peace and tranquility. What he got was a life of crime . . . crime reporting, that is, at the prestigious Yomiuri Shinbun. For twelve years of eighty-hour work weeks, he covered the seedy side of Japan, where extortion, murder, human trafficking, and corruption are as familiar as ramen noodles and sake. But when his final scoop brought him face to face with Japan s most infamous yakuza boss and the threat of death for him and his family Adelstein decided to step down . . . momentarily. Then, he fought back.

In Tokyo Vice, Adelstein tells a riveting, often humorous tale of his journey from an inexperienced cub reporter who made rookie mistakes like getting in a martial-arts…

I was looking for a book that would give me real insight into Japanese culture, I have a lot of books and some of them very entertaining, and some of them boring. But no book has taught me so much about Japanese culture and describe to me the inner working of the corporate, criminal, and the political intricacies of Japan. Tokyo Vice for a short book had so many layers to it had at the edge of my seat at times, and perplexed in others. He tackles cultural adaptation to an expose of crime, corruption, and social decadence, to personal moral and ethical dilemmas, Adelstein’s story covers ten years of his life; ten years that made his life, in a world few people can ever hope to see or understand. To keep it simple this book was an amazing read and worth it for anyone interested in life in Japan.

Link: Amazon
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