Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army

Author - Meirion Harries ... [Goo?] [Posters]

This Paperback Book item from Random House was reviewed on 3-Nov-2008.

Search ISBN:0679753036 offer from Abebooks or used books from Alibris. Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army Reference Book. Classifications : Japan Asia History Subjects Books General World War II Military History Subjects Books General AAS World War II Military History Subjects Books General World History Subjects Books General AAS World H . Click the following link to view the cover of Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army.

Related topics: Japan. Asia. History. Subjects. Books. General. World War II. Military. History. Subjects.

1) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. Before reading Soldiers of the Sun my knowledge of Japanese history was mostly limited to the events and personalities of WWII and the years immediately preceding. I decided to read it in order to get a deeper historical background for WWII Japan.

I was surprised to find out that Shinto, which includes deification of the emperor, was not an immemorial belief system in Japan, but a creation of the late 1800s in order to provide unification on the national level after the Meiji Restoration and decline of the Samurai. Japan then rapidly industrialized and developed their military outwardly along western lines, but inwardly with the Bushido warrior code, which came to be perverted for state ends, and Shinto as the animating ideals. What we see therefore is an isolated island culture jumping in less than a half century from medieval feudalism straight into late modernity, with no intervening age of reason or enlightenment. This is a theme that elucidates much about why Japan acted as they did in starting their expansion and how they treated vanquished foes.

The husband-wife co-authors do an admirable job of laying this down and chronicling all the developments and political machinations that led Imperial Japan down the road to disaster.
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2) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. I very much enjoyed this history; it was well written, included many aspects of warfare, was clearly deeply and broadly researched, and kept its focus on the Japanese army, which has considerably less written on it than many other areas of the pacific war. Nonetheless, serious flaws exist. Firstly, as is apparently true in general in Pacific war literature, too little emphasis is given to China. This is better here than in Toland´s inferior history Rising Sun, but still lacks remotely proportionate attention, either for resources expended or political and ideological focus. The authors also fall into a trap Toland suffers as well, which is too favorable a portrayal of the Japanese. While Nanking receives sufficient treatment (to the extent one can call anything short of some sort of eternal damnation sufficient for such atrocities) but Japanese army men are portrayed in far too good a light. Kempeitai are inadequately addressed, and far too many men are simply solid imperial servants. The fact is that the Japanese considerably outdid the Nazis in the China War, and histories such as this simply don´t say enough. While this is not so revisionist as Letters from Iwo Jima, too much of the inhuman that has to be remembered is forgotten when the Japanese army leadership is brought to life in a book´s pages.¤

3) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. The book suffers from its over-reliance on secondary sources and leaves many incipient ideas undeveloped. This is partly a consequence of biting off too much: a history not just of the Imperial Japanese Army but a century of world history. But there is no excuse for the meagre and unreliable citations supporting the text: too many references are left unattributed. Some worthwhile elements in the narrative include the analysis of Japan´s transition from "nation-at-arms" to "nation-at-war"; Japan´s backwardness in army strategy and armaments after WW1 (having missed the lessons of the Western Front); and the persistent power divisions and delays to action within "totalitarian" Japan after 1937. A lot of ground is covered in this book but on each major theme other writers have done better.¤

4) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. I first read the Harries couple´s book about seven or eight years ago in High School and loved it. It really dispels the myths and attemps to reach an analytical if critical understanding of the Imperial Army in particular and Imperial Japan in general. I am re-reading it again and am even more impressed at how well it flows for a book of involved historical analysis on a wide-ranging and complex topic. While my own reference library on modern Japan and modern Japanese military history has grown to include over one hundred volumes as I got my BA and MA in modern Japanese History - this book is one of the first I still turn to for quick though comprehensive reference on some of the critical events on the topic. Great stuff. The British perspective does not detract either. Indeed the after-action reports on Japanese behavior, capabilities, and tactics from the CBI and other fronts outside of the US "island hopping" campaign, add an interesting outsider´s take on the IJA. Get this one, you won´t be sorry.¤

5) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. This is a great book, especially for those wishing to understand the complexities in building a national army out of a feudal society during the Meiji restoration.

The Japanese use of "total intelligence" is also quite interesting, in that there are many similarities between Japanese tactics in the Pacific War and the Russo-Japanese and Nishin Wars.

I don´t usually enjoy history books written by attorneys or journalists, but this is a big exception.¤

6) Paperback Book Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army by Random House. Soldiers of the Sun traces the origins of the Imperial Japanese Army back to its samurai roots in the nineteenth century to tell the story of the rise and fall of this extraordinary military force.

Meirion and Susie Harries have written the first full Western account of the Imperial Japanese Army. Drawing on Japanese, English, French, and American sources, the authors penetrate the lingering wartime enmity and propaganda to lay bare the true character of the Imperial Army.

Praise for Soldiers of the Sun

"This book ought to be read as a necessary prelude to the ill-informed and uncultured debate that rages in the United States. The lessons of history, and of what happens when a thwarted nation finds itself encircled, are there to be learned."

-- Newsday

"A fine history that analyzes the military legacy of the Imperial Japanese Army and assesses moral responsibility for its excesses."

-- Kirkus Reviews

Meirion and Susie Harries began their writing partnership in 1979 and have since co-authored six books, as well as articles on Japanese security and environmental policy for English and Japanese newspapers. This is their second book on Japanese history. They live in England.¤

Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 1-Dec-2008, 06797530369780679753032, 670-170-130-360-810-890-991-4X1-8

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