In this fantastic combination of history, Japanese studies, and biography, Alisa Freedman brought some of the top female scholars of Japanese studies together to construct a comprehensive study and discussion of the development of Japanese studies in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Each chapter, written by a different woman scholar, provides new insights into their work, research, and discovery of Japanese studies from their time as students to professionals. Representing a wide variety of disciplines and subtopics in Japanese studies from all over Japanese history, each chapter is absolutely engaging and enjoyable to read, and this book captures the diversity of study in Japanese studies. Each woman brings her personal journey to life, capturing the highs and lows of building a new discipline and the challenges of being a woman in academia, and the individual narratives weave a fascinating tapestry of Japanese studies. A mix of academic and personal language, this book creates conversations with the reader through each case study and personal essay. Tracking the development of a discipline through vibrant language, engaging and personal essays, and incredible details and experiences, this book is a must-read for any scholars of Japanese or East Asian studies and for women interested in joining the ranks of academia.

Having majored in Japanese studies in college many moons ago, I was very interested in reading this book. A person like me is probably going to be the kind of reader that the author is targeting. I thought I'd be more familiar with the women profiled in the book, but most of them were new to me, so I found it quite interesting to read about them--and to learn more about the women I already knew of. There are multiple aspects of each chapter that can be considered and it is a thorough collection. I'd imagine every university library would want a copy!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. There are those of us out there who are thrilled to see it!

I read the first 20% of this book and found the essays to be interesting but after a short while they felt extremely repetitive and were saying the same thing. I was expecting more about the academic and personal reasons that these women ended up in Japanese Studies which we did get a little but not the to degree I wanted. I ended up DNFing this shortly after.

Freedman invited women who studied Japan, earned graduate degrees and began careers in either Japan or North America between the 1950s and 1980. Each entry showed the balanced between professional and personal responsibilities. Reminding readers that We challenge that Japanese Studies wasn’t just established by men who worked for the US military after World War II or were from missionary families in Japan. Over 30 women contributed to this book and shared their stories of using Japanese source materials in research published in English and being the first foreigners to study at Japanese universities. Their careers benefitted from fellowships, educational developments, activist movements to include the study of women and Asia in university curricula, and measures to prevent gender discrimination. Yet there were instances when, due to their gender, women received smaller salaries, faced hurdles to tenure, and were excluded from, or ignored, at conferences.

Why I started this book: Looking for more Japan related books on Netgalley and this title caught my eye.

Why I finished it: Fascinating to see the paths and careers of women studying Japan for the past 70 years. This book gave insight into the challenges and rewards of a life in academia. And because there was over 30 entries, there was also a variety of experiences dealing with sexism, tenure, unexpected research and serendipity. This book showed that there was a multitude of routes to a successful career.