Three Tigers, One Mountain: A Journey Through the Bitter History and Current Conflicts of China, Korea, and Japan
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- Create Date：2021-05-29 11:51:58
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Michael Booth
- ISBN：1250114055
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Summary
From the author of The Almost Nearly Perfect People， a lively tour through Japan， Korea， and China， exploring the intertwined cultures and often fraught history of these neighboring countries。
There is an ancient Chinese proverb that states， "Two tigers cannot share the same mountain。" However， in East Asia， there are three tigers on that mountain: China， Japan， and Korea， and they have a long history of turmoil and tension with each other。 In his latest entertaining and thought provoking narrative travelogue， Michael Booth sets out to discover how deep， really， is the enmity between these three "tiger" nations， and what prevents them from making peace。 Currently China's economic power continues to grow， Japan is becoming more militaristic， and Korea struggles to reconcile its westernized south with the dictatorial Communist north。 Booth， long fascinated with the region， travels by car， ferry， train， and foot， experiencing the people and culture of these nations up close。 No matter where he goes， the burden of history， and the memory of past atrocities， continues to overshadow present relationships。 Ultimately， Booth seeks a way forward for these closely intertwined， neighboring nations。
An enlightening， entertaining and sometimes sobering journey through China， Japan， and Korea， Three Tigers， One Mountain is an intimate and in-depth look at some of the world's most powerful and important countries。
There is an ancient Chinese proverb that states， "Two tigers cannot share the same mountain。" However， in East Asia， there are three tigers on that mountain: China， Japan， and Korea， and they have a long history of turmoil and tension with each other。 In his latest entertaining and thought provoking narrative travelogue， Michael Booth sets out to discover how deep， really， is the enmity between these three "tiger" nations， and what prevents them from making peace。 Currently China's economic power continues to grow， Japan is becoming more militaristic， and Korea struggles to reconcile its westernized south with the dictatorial Communist north。 Booth， long fascinated with the region， travels by car， ferry， train， and foot， experiencing the people and culture of these nations up close。 No matter where he goes， the burden of history， and the memory of past atrocities， continues to overshadow present relationships。 Ultimately， Booth seeks a way forward for these closely intertwined， neighboring nations。
An enlightening， entertaining and sometimes sobering journey through China， Japan， and Korea， Three Tigers， One Mountain is an intimate and in-depth look at some of the world's most powerful and important countries。
Reviews
Samantha
，
I would describe this book as "arm-chair history" and very readable。 The book provides a series of chapters that correspond to each stop on Booth's trip around Japan， Korea， China and Taiwan in which he investigates current popular opinion and the shaping of current culture from past conflicts between each of the countries。 Roughly one-third of the book is spent on each country。 Whilst a map is provided that shows his route it would have been great to have pictures to enhance his wonderful trave I would describe this book as "arm-chair history" and very readable。 The book provides a series of chapters that correspond to each stop on Booth's trip around Japan， Korea， China and Taiwan in which he investigates current popular opinion and the shaping of current culture from past conflicts between each of the countries。 Roughly one-third of the book is spent on each country。 Whilst a map is provided that shows his route it would have been great to have pictures to enhance his wonderful travel writing。 Booth has a great knack of intertwining a country's history with an often quite comical commentary on current culture。 His book has its main focus on the impact of the East Asian wars and how each country has and is dealing with forgiveness。 He interviews a wide range of subjects including students， demonstrators， museum curators and academics and draws upon a seemingly wide source of secondary materials， although no bibliography is included。 This is a great way to present history and I learned a lot， particularly about Taiwan。 And it makes me want to travel - something I hope we will be able to do soon after COVID has gone。 。。。more
Rishabh Sinha
，
Blends good historical writing and great travel writing
Richard Thompson
，
From the Goodreads Blurb: An enlightening， entertaining and sometimes sobering journey through China， Japan， and Korea， Three Tigers， One Mountain is an intimate and in-depth look at some of the world’s most powerful and important countries。 I was amazed at how much I didn't know about the history and geography of this corner of the world。 An entertaining， disturbing and though-provoking look at a corner of the globe that we don't hear a lot about on a day-to-day basis。 From the Goodreads Blurb: An enlightening， entertaining and sometimes sobering journey through China， Japan， and Korea， Three Tigers， One Mountain is an intimate and in-depth look at some of the world’s most powerful and important countries。 I was amazed at how much I didn't know about the history and geography of this corner of the world。 An entertaining， disturbing and though-provoking look at a corner of the globe that we don't hear a lot about on a day-to-day basis。 。。。more
Pi
，
To nie są łatwe tematy， bo JAPONIA， CHINY i KOREA są krajami o niezwykle skomplikowanych relacjach nie tylko wzajemnych， ale i wewnętrznych。 Jest wiele prawdy w podtytule "O ludziach skłóconych na śmierć i życie" - tak。。。 oni faktycznie walczą na śmierć i życie。 Co do wniosków i spostrzeżeń autora Michaela Bootha， to raz się z nim zgadzam， innym razem wcale i cieszę się， bo w reportażu chodzi właśnie o ten dialog， dyskusję， walkę na argumenty。 Czasem dziennikarza ponosi własna duma i nie potrafi To nie są łatwe tematy， bo JAPONIA， CHINY i KOREA są krajami o niezwykle skomplikowanych relacjach nie tylko wzajemnych， ale i wewnętrznych。 Jest wiele prawdy w podtytule "O ludziach skłóconych na śmierć i życie" - tak。。。 oni faktycznie walczą na śmierć i życie。 Co do wniosków i spostrzeżeń autora Michaela Bootha， to raz się z nim zgadzam， innym razem wcale i cieszę się， bo w reportażu chodzi właśnie o ten dialog， dyskusję， walkę na argumenty。 Czasem dziennikarza ponosi własna duma i nie potrafi na widziany świat spojrzeć obiektywnym okiem （ wiem， to głupie słowo， bo nie ma czegoś takiego jak "obiektywne spojrzenie"） a przynajmniej okiem niezabarwionym tak intensywnie własnymi poglądami。 Ten reportaż daje jednak ogromny ładunek wiedzy， mamy tu moc historii， odniesień do trudnych czasów， ale i mamy nowoczesność， to co TERAZ jest， a na co bezwzględnie wpłynęło to， co BYŁO。 Ciekawa analiza， choć jak wspomniałam， czasem bywa krzywdząca。 Może to dziwne， ale najbardziej zainteresowała mnie JAPONIA， choć myślałam， że będzie to raczej KOREA。 Autor podróżuje przez te kraje， odwiedza wielkie miasta， opisuje to， co widzi za oknem i rozmawia z ludźmi i to bardzo ciekawymi ludźmi。 Dowiadujemy się wiele o kulturach tych krajów， a są to naprawdę odmienne zwyczaje。 Zerkamy w najbardziej wstrząsające rejony przeszłości， by przenieść się w teraźniejszość i próbować zrozumieć rzeczywistość。Michael ma lekkie pióro i wielką wiedzę。 Wszystko by mi się podobało， gdyby nie ta jego osobista krucjata， w której najbardziej drażni nieugięta， moim zdaniem głupia wiara w to， że JA WIEM NAJLEPIEJ i TERAZ WAM POWIEM， JAKI ŚWIAT POWINIEN BYĆ （pewnie autor całkiem nieźle by się odnalazł w roli cesarza）。 Lecz już nie przesadzajmy， bo to niezwykle wartościowa książka， którą - owszem - należy czytać z jakąś już wiedzą i zdrowym rozsądkiem， ale ta publikacja otwiera oczy na wiele rzeczy。 Ja dowiedziałam się z niej naprawdę bardzo wiele。 Niektóre fakty mnie zszokowały np。 to， że w Japonii niektóre grupy otwarcie mogą głosić śmierć dla Koreańczyków。 Michael Booth， choć nie ujął mnie osobowością， to zdecydowanie doceniam jego zaangażowanie， poczucie misji （choć czasem śmieszne）， wiedzę， dociekliwość， trud odszukania niektórych osób， skrupulatność i barwne opisy。 Jestem pewna， że każdy， kto sięgnie po tę książkę - skorzysta。 To taki pewniak， bo choć nie zgadzasz się w każdej kwestii z dziennikarskim komentarzem Bootha， to zostajesz zmuszony do samodzielnego myślenia。 JAPONIA， CHINY i KOREA， to miejsca， które dla nas są odległe， a tamtejsze kultury są nam obce， a może wręcz egzotyczne。 Systemy wartości， rozumienie postępu， pęd do pracy， człowiek jako trybik w wielkiej fabryce władzy。。。 cóż， to może przerażać。 Są tam jednak ludzie tacy， jak my。 Ludzie， którzy mają swoje marzenia i o nie walczą， choć to ciężka walka （CHINY są komunistyczne， a kto jak to， ale Polacy wiedzą， co to komuna）。 Zawsze jest żal właśnie tych "małych"， tych， którzy się rodzą bez wpływu na otoczenie。 Muszą żyć， tak jak wielcy zagrają。 historia tworzy TERAZ， TERAZ tworzy historię 6/10 seria MUNDUS Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiegobo。wiem 。。。more
Anna
，
How much do you know about the cultural relationships between East Asian countries and its’ people？ In this fascinating read on that very issue， we learn how they share core values from Confucianism; how China has modeled a great deal of its’ economic strategies on post-war Japan; and everyone’s love of Korean Pop culture。 So， why is there still so much animosity between them when there is so much to gain from each other？ Certainly， the horrendous horrors of war have created scars that will not How much do you know about the cultural relationships between East Asian countries and its’ people？ In this fascinating read on that very issue， we learn how they share core values from Confucianism; how China has modeled a great deal of its’ economic strategies on post-war Japan; and everyone’s love of Korean Pop culture。 So， why is there still so much animosity between them when there is so much to gain from each other？ Certainly， the horrendous horrors of war have created scars that will not heal。 Generally， an entertaining， enlightening， and just plain fun， book that will capture your imagination and screeching with laughter now and then。 。。。more
Nic
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Absolutely fantastic。 Obviously it just scratches the surface of the history and it is of course from a Western perspective but it definitely gives you a great starting place if you want to learn more。 Also I was not expecting to have a list of cities I now want to visit after reading。 So it is also a bit of travel log。
Sarede Switzer
，
Really enjoyed this book。 Really enjoying this author。 Affirmation that Americans really need to get out more if they they we got problems in our country with racism and sexism （and much much more）。
Mr R
，
An odd book， sort of a cross between a pop introduction to regional politics and history meets travel writing。 It was what I was looking for though - an easy introduction to regional politics。 Perhaps lacking in depth， and with the inclusion of Taiwan the title is a little misleading。 Also， it barely touches on North Korea。
Perrie
，
Loved this - I originally bought this thinking it was purely a history book but it was more of a travel guide to South Korea， Japan， China and Taiwan with contextual history included。 I usually struggle to get past the halfway point with non fiction but this was so easy to read， and had great humour and warmth to it。 Enjoyed every moment。
Northwestreader
，
I have traveled to several of the countries that the author discusses in this book and I find his comments about each to be spot on。 He clearly has accrued a great deal of first hand experiences in this part of the world。 He has a keen observational eye and a wonderful sense of humor， not to mention a very affable way with words。 His writing is reminiscent of Bill Bryson's approach to travel writing， so there were lots of chuckles as I progressed through the book。Booth has a lot to say about pol I have traveled to several of the countries that the author discusses in this book and I find his comments about each to be spot on。 He clearly has accrued a great deal of first hand experiences in this part of the world。 He has a keen observational eye and a wonderful sense of humor， not to mention a very affable way with words。 His writing is reminiscent of Bill Bryson's approach to travel writing， so there were lots of chuckles as I progressed through the book。Booth has a lot to say about politics and history and， while I found that interesting and informative， I must say I was a bit overwhelmed with names。 。。。more
Robert Petrie
，
I’d recommend this book for anyone looking for a primer on Northeast Asia’s history， contemporary issues， and a clearer understanding of the disputes between Japan and its neighbors。 The books’s main virtue is that it was written as a travelogue。 Booth tactfully sprinkles amusing and interesting anecdotes throughout the book while using interviews with academics， museum staff， and ordinary people to add texture and life to what could have otherwise been a dry rehash of information easily found i I’d recommend this book for anyone looking for a primer on Northeast Asia’s history， contemporary issues， and a clearer understanding of the disputes between Japan and its neighbors。 The books’s main virtue is that it was written as a travelogue。 Booth tactfully sprinkles amusing and interesting anecdotes throughout the book while using interviews with academics， museum staff， and ordinary people to add texture and life to what could have otherwise been a dry rehash of information easily found in academic tomes or Wikipedia。I’d also recommend this book even for those who’ve read extensively about the region。 His interviews and first-hand accounts of his visits to museums and historical sites allows for a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the historical issues in the region。 。。。more
Patricia
，
Great title。 Everyone who lives in this part of the world is aware of the judgmental relationships Asians have with one another， yet this is the first book I've seen that has tried to explain the reasons behind some of them from a non-academic point of view。 （In my experience， it is usually the academic historians who touch upon the societal after-effects of historical events in the last chapter or afterwords of their books， even though there are a lot more factors at play than history！） For tha Great title。 Everyone who lives in this part of the world is aware of the judgmental relationships Asians have with one another， yet this is the first book I've seen that has tried to explain the reasons behind some of them from a non-academic point of view。 （In my experience， it is usually the academic historians who touch upon the societal after-effects of historical events in the last chapter or afterwords of their books， even though there are a lot more factors at play than history！） For that， the author deserves real credit。 However， whether you think the time reading this book was well spent or not， is going to depend very much on who you are， and that is one of the problems with the book， or at least it was for me。 It wasn't obvious who the author saw as his readership。 If you're a newcomer to the region， this could be a book for you。 Headed on a cruise to East Asia stopping at ports in Korea， Japan and China （as many of the international cruise ships' itineraries are arranged）？ Tuck this book into a bag and bring it along。 It's an easy read， perfect for dipping in and out of on a cruise ship deck and guaranteed to tempt passing strangers into conversation。 And here's another target market: Having spent considerable time in the region in 'Regional Head office' jobs travelling around the region， often with a senior VIP in tow from a distant home office， it has always amazed me how blind casual visitors to a region can be about local or regional sensitivities。 So if this could be you one day， again， this book would be a good place to start; at the very least it will help you avoid a major social faux pas such as raising your glass to the wrong height in a 'Cheers！" moment， and give you a light dose of regional history at the same time。In many ways， this is a travelogue， but with a question that strongly influenced the itinerary。 Although Booth writes as if his travels through the region were a casual jaunt， we know he had a purpose and a schedule with pre-arranged meetings （too many， from my point of view with long-term expats， but OK， languages were a barrier。） But for someone familiar with the region， this wasn't good enough。 What you hear from people you've just met or have only known for a short time is very different from what you are going to hear （or detect） from say， your own parent or a very good friend， especially when the topic is as loaded as this one！ I also feel quite strongly that there should have been a chapter right at the beginning with more of the background history of the three countries。 Scholar David Abulalfia covers this extremely well in just 30 or pages （Chapters 10 and 11） in his The Boundless Sea: A Human History of the Oceans where his coverage of the tension between the three countries is beautifully described and sprinkled with such wonderful anecdotes as the note that the Emperor of Japan once sent to the Emperor of Tang China， "The Son of Heaven of the Land of the Rising Sun greets the Son of Heaven of the Land of the Sinking Sun"。 I'm also quite sure that language would have been a barrier for author Booth。 The choice of a word alone can convey a prejudice or judgment， and even the best translators sometimes have to just 'grab' at the word that comes to mind rather than choose the one with the right nuances。 And even those who spoke to Booth in English rather than their native language: did they understand the word they would have chosen in its fullest sense？ （I once had a conversation in China with a young man who kept referring to women as 'broads' until I told him that was a very old-fashioned and sexist word used a long time ago by American gangsters and policemen。 Turned out he was a fan of old crime novels and had no idea of its connotations。） What did Booth miss in some of the conversations he had， I kept thinking。I'm pretty sure there are going to be tomatoes as well as bouquets thrown， so I'm very curious to read what our Asian readers will have to say。 。。。more
Nikolina Dancheva
，
С Майкъл Бут се запознах преди малко повече от година благодарение на "Почти перфектните хора （Отвъд мита за скандинавската утопия）" （ревю） и много бързо си допаднехме （поне той на мен。 Аз на него - надали。。。）。 Британският му хумор， съчетан с интересни преживявания из чужди държави и култури， които авторът разказва по напълно неучебникарски начин， веднага ме спечелиха и още докато четях гореспоменатата книгата， побързах да намеря какво още е написал Бут。 Освен 4 книги за френската и японската ку С Майкъл Бут се запознах преди малко повече от година благодарение на "Почти перфектните хора （Отвъд мита за скандинавската утопия）" （ревю） и много бързо си допаднехме （поне той на мен。 Аз на него - надали。。。）。 Британският му хумор， съчетан с интересни преживявания из чужди държави и култури， които авторът разказва по напълно неучебникарски начин， веднага ме спечелиха и още докато четях гореспоменатата книгата， побързах да намеря какво още е написал Бут。 Освен 4 книги за френската и японската кухни （по 2 за всяка！） и още няколко на разнообразни теми， имаше и едно предстоящо заглавие， което нямаше как да подмина: "Three tigers， one mountain: A journey through the bitter history and current conflicts of China， Korea， and Japan"。 Следва малко предистория， с която да обясня защо се развълнувах， виждайки въпросната книга。 Аз и историята сме скарани още от гимназиалните години， но въпреки това отчаяно се опитвам да убедя мозъка ми да запомни поне по-важните исторически конфликти и моменти。 Борбата е непрестанна， излагацията от моя страна - голяма， но поне открих начин нещичко все пак да остане в спомените ми за по-дълго - художествената литература！ Ако прочета нехудожествена книга， която се съсредоточава върху дадено историческо събитие， мозъкът ми реагира подобно на часовете по въпросния предмет от училище。 Ако обаче го излъжа， че ще си говорим за измислени хора， които СЛУЧАЙНО са попаднали в реални моменти от миналото ни， умението му да помни се задейства。 Оказа се， че писателският талант на Майкъл Бут също оказват подобен ефект върху мисловната ми дейност и в главата ми остава не малко количество информация от неговите книги。 Именно затова， виждайки темата на предстоящата му книга， нямаше как да пропусна да я прочета。 Ако вашият мозък е в по-добри отношения с историята или пък се интересувате от минали и настоящи конфликти в Източна Азия， твърде е вероятно "Three tigers， one mountain" да не ви предостави почти никаква нова информация。 Истината е， че дори аз бях наясно с туй-онуй за отношенията между Китай， Корея и Япония， но въпреки това не смятам， че ще ви доскучае в компанията на Майкъл Бут。 Една от причините да го харесвам толкова е подходът му - Бут не просто разказва за миналото и настоящето на дадена държава， седейки на топло у дома и правейки справки с хиляди официални източници。 Мъжът си вдига багажа， а понякога и цялото семейство， и се отправя на пътешествие。 Той посещава разнообразни градчета， отива лично на известни и дори противоречиви места， разглежда лично музеи и паметници， но най-вече - говори с местни хора с разнообразни убеждения。 В неговите книги ще се запознаете със сънародници， които имат крайно противоположни мнения по едни и същи въпроси。 Някои от тях спокойно могат да бъдат наречени екстремисти， други виждат нещата в по-сивата зона и поне се опитват да разберат обратното на тях мнение。 В същото време Бут се държи изключително уважително към всеки свой събеседник като дава еднаква гласност на всеки от тях。 Разбира се， личното мнение на писателя е ясно разграничимо， но въпреки това то не е натрапено или набутано на сила в лицето ви。 Цялото ревю може да прочетете тук: https://nikireads。wordpress。com/2021/。。。 。。。more
Trilok Jain
，
This book is a brief into both the histories of the three nations and the reason for conflicts between them， as they stand today。 Although it is not a scholarly work， the book is a good piece of journalism。 The wars， colonial-era atrocities， present-day priorities to the more contemporary prevalence of nationalist propaganda， the book covers how each has shaped the relations between these "tigers" of Asia。In a few places， the hypotheses have been assumed to be more widespread where they are more This book is a brief into both the histories of the three nations and the reason for conflicts between them， as they stand today。 Although it is not a scholarly work， the book is a good piece of journalism。 The wars， colonial-era atrocities， present-day priorities to the more contemporary prevalence of nationalist propaganda， the book covers how each has shaped the relations between these "tigers" of Asia。In a few places， the hypotheses have been assumed to be more widespread where they are more anecdotal。 Nevertheless， the author has been diligent about his research and interviews that involved talking to academicians as well as YouTubers。 As history is also in part what it is perceived， I think including the latter is important in the contemporary world。Overall a good read - informative and witty。 。。。more
Alexis Selby
，
I enjoyed this book。 As a Westerner living in and highly interested in both the histories and modern issues and unique cultures of eastern Asia， there was a lot of this book I could enjoy。 There were also a lot of parts of this book that really irked me。 Before you read this book， know that the author visits Japan first， and then visits the other countries and judges their ways of life and compares them all up against Japan as if Japan holds the cultural standard that the rest of Asia needs to m I enjoyed this book。 As a Westerner living in and highly interested in both the histories and modern issues and unique cultures of eastern Asia， there was a lot of this book I could enjoy。 There were also a lot of parts of this book that really irked me。 Before you read this book， know that the author visits Japan first， and then visits the other countries and judges their ways of life and compares them all up against Japan as if Japan holds the cultural standard that the rest of Asia needs to meet。 I too love Japan。 I understand why the author enjoys that country the most。 However I think Korea （especially Korea）， mainland China， and Taiwan were unfairly judged。 But then again， this book is more like a travelogue of a European white man’s brief stint through eastern Asia。 Not a lifelong memoir or deeply researched history book。 If you don’t know much about Asia， I think this is an interesting book to read。 If you do know a bit about Asia and have spent much more time in China or Korea than the author did， prepare to probably be disappointed。 。。。more
Carmen Naíde
，
Half history book， half travelogue。 Highly recommend as it is quite informative but easy to digest， full of interesting facts and witty remarks that make you laugh。Booth travels through Japan， South Korea， China and Taiwan visiting important historic landmarks and interviewing people deeply connected to such issues: they run museums， campaign， research， write about them， are ambassadors， anthropologists or politicians。 He also met with veterans， victims of war crimes， of torture and oppression。T Half history book， half travelogue。 Highly recommend as it is quite informative but easy to digest， full of interesting facts and witty remarks that make you laugh。Booth travels through Japan， South Korea， China and Taiwan visiting important historic landmarks and interviewing people deeply connected to such issues: they run museums， campaign， research， write about them， are ambassadors， anthropologists or politicians。 He also met with veterans， victims of war crimes， of torture and oppression。The relationship between these countries is quite frankly a huge messy web of political issues and war grudges。 Nonetheless， Booth did a great job going through the combination of historical conflicts between each Tiger。 。。。more
Denise
，
International relations is a topic that tends to be both fascinating and complicated， and the fraught relationships between Japan， South Korea， China and Taiwan with their centuries of contentious history and manifold grievances are perhaps even more complicated than most。 In a book that is part travelogue， part journalistic enquiry， Booth shares both his own impressions from travelling to these East Asian countries and the results of extensive research into the histories， hearts and minds of th International relations is a topic that tends to be both fascinating and complicated， and the fraught relationships between Japan， South Korea， China and Taiwan with their centuries of contentious history and manifold grievances are perhaps even more complicated than most。 In a book that is part travelogue， part journalistic enquiry， Booth shares both his own impressions from travelling to these East Asian countries and the results of extensive research into the histories， hearts and minds of their people。 Fascinating and quite informative。 。。。more
Hee Jin
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 was hesitant to read yet another book by a white male about Korea/Asia but because I did enjoy his other books I thought I'd give it a try， plus the premise sounded interesting。 forgot about Booth's affinity for Japan， however， and so the entire book is heavily tinted with affection for Japan。 was hesitant to read yet another book by a white male about Korea/Asia but because I did enjoy his other books I thought I'd give it a try， plus the premise sounded interesting。 forgot about Booth's affinity for Japan， however， and so the entire book is heavily tinted with affection for Japan。 。。。more
Brook
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The benefit of an overview is being able to hear one consistent opinion and then be able to screen out certain variables。 This journalist travelled through China， Japan，Taiwan and Korea， discussing opinions taken from inhabitants from each of these countries， attempting enable ‘outsiders’ to begin to grasp complexities of the attitudes and dependencies between these nations。 Often the authors comments are hilarious。。。 and might offend， i suppose。 Certainly the book cannot be ‘the expert’ on many The benefit of an overview is being able to hear one consistent opinion and then be able to screen out certain variables。 This journalist travelled through China， Japan，Taiwan and Korea， discussing opinions taken from inhabitants from each of these countries， attempting enable ‘outsiders’ to begin to grasp complexities of the attitudes and dependencies between these nations。 Often the authors comments are hilarious。。。 and might offend， i suppose。 Certainly the book cannot be ‘the expert’ on many subjects discussed， but I doubt that was the authors intent。 I think he hoped we， as humans， might do more to understand and bridge gaps between each other。 。。。more
Gabriel
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It is a good general book to learn more about North Asia's history and current affairs but in some parts it concentrates in some specific topics and in some parts has judgements， a personal view of cases or opinions that are not representative。 It is a good general book to learn more about North Asia's history and current affairs but in some parts it concentrates in some specific topics and in some parts has judgements， a personal view of cases or opinions that are not representative。 。。。more
Cynthia Livingston
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This the second book I have read trying to understand more about South Korea。 It covers Japan， Korea and China （including Hong Kong） - as well as the island of 23 million off the China coast known as The Republic of China or Taiwan。 The author took a very unorthodox approach in each country by visiting a lot of museums dealing with past history， including the comfort women and also went to a viewing area for No Mans Land between South and North Korea。 There were also interviews with selected ind This the second book I have read trying to understand more about South Korea。 It covers Japan， Korea and China （including Hong Kong） - as well as the island of 23 million off the China coast known as The Republic of China or Taiwan。 The author took a very unorthodox approach in each country by visiting a lot of museums dealing with past history， including the comfort women and also went to a viewing area for No Mans Land between South and North Korea。 There were also interviews with selected individuals。 Confucianism， Big Brother， Middle Brother and Little Brother。Lots of bad things done to each other over the years， lots of unresolved feelings。 I thought it was a fascinating read that peeled one more layer off the onion。 。。。more
Ben Weaver
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I actually hated a few of the chapters in the first part of this book。 It felt like I was reading a memoir of a wordy white dude who needed a way to pay for his expensive trip around Asia。 Although， I'm very glad I kept reading。 The book really improved after a few chapters of Micheal simply talking about his trip and onto the reason I actually bought this book， the present and past conflicts of the Three Tigers （S。 Korea， Japan， China （and also Taiwan））。 When we did talk about the history it wa I actually hated a few of the chapters in the first part of this book。 It felt like I was reading a memoir of a wordy white dude who needed a way to pay for his expensive trip around Asia。 Although， I'm very glad I kept reading。 The book really improved after a few chapters of Micheal simply talking about his trip and onto the reason I actually bought this book， the present and past conflicts of the Three Tigers （S。 Korea， Japan， China （and also Taiwan））。 When we did talk about the history it was engaging and in-depth。 I would've liked to see some notes/source list at the end as it always good to see where an author gather their info。Overall， I suppose it was worth reading。 。。。more
Lim Yaner
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I really enjoyed reading this during the lockdown because this travel writing really transports the reader。 The way the bustle of the city is written about， personal observations of the people in a country you’re a tourist in and just the mood and excitement of being on a ferry heading to a foreign place were one of the few things I enjoy about the book as I was reading it at this time， stuck at home reliving a repetitive routine。 I also liked that he explores a variety of topics depending on wh I really enjoyed reading this during the lockdown because this travel writing really transports the reader。 The way the bustle of the city is written about， personal observations of the people in a country you’re a tourist in and just the mood and excitement of being on a ferry heading to a foreign place were one of the few things I enjoy about the book as I was reading it at this time， stuck at home reliving a repetitive routine。 I also liked that he explores a variety of topics depending on where he goes and that each topic is short enough for you to learn a thing or two but also hold your attention。 It could’ve been more in depth， and I was not a fan of some of his personal thoughts and observations， especially as a tourist in an Asian country， but I guess that’s subjective。 Overall a really good book blending travel writing and historical/ political non fiction。 。。。more
Jack Davenport
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Though not a scholarly text， this book offers an look into the relations between the three tigers of East Asia: China， Korea， and Japan。 Of course， libraries of material exist about the interplay between these nations and their histories and interactions are complex。 This book isn't meant to replace or rewrite that material。 The author writes with a humorous and engaging tone and interweaves personal anecdotes， interviews with academics and regular folks， and historical references。 The result is Though not a scholarly text， this book offers an look into the relations between the three tigers of East Asia: China， Korea， and Japan。 Of course， libraries of material exist about the interplay between these nations and their histories and interactions are complex。 This book isn't meant to replace or rewrite that material。 The author writes with a humorous and engaging tone and interweaves personal anecdotes， interviews with academics and regular folks， and historical references。 The result is a book that's quite enjoyable when we don't expect too much from it。 Overall， it's a fresh perspective into the emerging and changing relations between these two nations and I thoroughly enjoyed it。 。。。more
Angie
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I initially selected this book to learn more about the history of China， expecting an academic read that would take me some time to finish。 It turned out to be a very entertaining quick read， while providing a general history of Japan， Korea and China interspersed with interesting travel anecdotes and pop culture。 For example， after reporting South Korea is the plastic surgery capital of the world the author had a cosmetic procedure done in Seoul so that he could relay the experience to his read I initially selected this book to learn more about the history of China， expecting an academic read that would take me some time to finish。 It turned out to be a very entertaining quick read， while providing a general history of Japan， Korea and China interspersed with interesting travel anecdotes and pop culture。 For example， after reporting South Korea is the plastic surgery capital of the world the author had a cosmetic procedure done in Seoul so that he could relay the experience to his readers！ I was slightly disappointed that he didn't provide more of China's history; the book seemed to be Japan-centric。 Like every other geographical area in the world， racism is rampant in Asia as well。 It was a little ironic that Japan got the most coverage in this book while he explains Japan's feelings of superiority。 Feelings of superiority， and acting on these feelings， have created all kinds of problems in the world and still continue to plague humanity。 Booth is an entertaining author， and I plan to read some of his other history/travel books。 。。。more
Daniel Goodman
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An East Asia travelouge by a guy who can't help but let his preference for Japan color everything he describes。。。 really disappointed by the poor representation of East Asia。If you are unfamiliar with East Asia: Don't read this book， as it will not provide you with a fair / accurate representstion of the unique cultures he visits。 As someone who lives in Seoul， I found his chapters on Korea laughbly inaccurate。。。 he seems to love attributing cultural phenomena shared between Korea and Japan， and An East Asia travelouge by a guy who can't help but let his preference for Japan color everything he describes。。。 really disappointed by the poor representation of East Asia。If you are unfamiliar with East Asia: Don't read this book， as it will not provide you with a fair / accurate representstion of the unique cultures he visits。 As someone who lives in Seoul， I found his chapters on Korea laughbly inaccurate。。。 he seems to love attributing cultural phenomena shared between Korea and Japan， and implying they are exclusively Korean （if they are negative， that is）。 He also uses some troubling language to talk about Japanese sexual enslavement of Koreans during WWII - describing a protest outside the Japanese embassy as being dome by "women who claim to have been。。。" Really？ If you ARE familiar with East Asia: Don't read this book unless you want to be annoyed。TL:DR: Author can't help but compare EVERYTHING to Japan， and clearly has thick rose colored glasses for the Japanese & Japanese culutre。 。。。more
Rhiannon
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this book was a quick listen， really interesting and gave good breadth of opinions。 Michael clearly has his own opinions， which may put some people who disagree with him off， although it's good he's not hiding them。I can't comment on the accuracy of any of the information， but it seems as though no one can agree on that either。 overall， really enjoyable。 this book was a quick listen， really interesting and gave good breadth of opinions。 Michael clearly has his own opinions， which may put some people who disagree with him off， although it's good he's not hiding them。I can't comment on the accuracy of any of the information， but it seems as though no one can agree on that either。 overall， really enjoyable。 。。。more
Computer Sushi
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I enjoyed learning the history and the author's narration throughout the chapters。 I enjoyed learning the history and the author's narration throughout the chapters。 。。。more
Meda Psibilskytė
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For someone who is new to Asian culture and history - this is the book to read。 Written in an easy to read manner， provides insights into some of the relationships between China， S。 Korea and japan， as well as the underlying reasons for it。 Interesting historical background， however I feel like I'll have to pick up another book to drill deeper into some of the events。 For someone who is new to Asian culture and history - this is the book to read。 Written in an easy to read manner， provides insights into some of the relationships between China， S。 Korea and japan， as well as the underlying reasons for it。 Interesting historical background， however I feel like I'll have to pick up another book to drill deeper into some of the events。 。。。more
Katja
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