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Original Essays | April 29, 2013

Edward Lee: IMG How to Clarify Butter: A Writer's Tale

2 comments By Edward Lee

Chefs don't have time to write. While I was working on Smoke and Pickles, I was running a restaurant — a daily regimen of testing recipes,... Continue »
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    Smoke and Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen

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2 Burnside Asia- Japan Contemporary 1945 to Present

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Tokyo Underworld: The Fast Times and Hard Life of an American Gangster in Japan

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Tokyo Underworld: The Fast Times and Hard Life of an American Gangster in Japan Cover

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

In this unorthodox chronicle of the rise of Japan, Inc., Robert Whiting, author of You Gotta Have Wa, gives us a fresh perspective on the economic miracle and near disaster that is modern Japan.

Through the eyes of Nick Zappetti, a former GI, former black marketer, failed professional wrestler, bungling diamond thief who turned himself into "the Mafia boss of Tokyo and the king of Rappongi," we meet the players and the losers in the high-stakes game of postwar finance, politics, and criminal corruption in which he thrived. Here's the story of the Imperial Hotel diamond robbers, who attempted (and may have accomplished) the biggest heist in Tokyo's history.

Here is Rikidozan, the professional wrestler who almost single-handedly revived Japanese pride, but whose own ethnicity had to be kept secret. And here is the story of the intimate relationships shared by Japan's ruling party, its financial combines, its ruthless criminal gangs, the CIA, American Big Business, and perhaps at least one presidential relative. Here is the underside of postwar Japan, which is only now coming to light.

Review:

"A fascinating look at some fascinating people who show how democracy advances hand in hand with crime in Japan." Mario Puzo

Review:

"[A] fun book about a wretched character....[F]undamentally this is a yarn rather than a tome." New York Times

Review:

"Zappetti's life would hold anyone's interest." Kirkus Reviews

Review:

"Excellent....An irreverent, subversive and entertaining yarn that enlightens readers about important aspects of Japanese history and the shadowy world of power." The Japan Times
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About the Author

Whiting is one of the few Westerners to write a weekly column in the Japanese press. He has appeared as a commentator in documentaries about Japan.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780375724893
Author:
Whiting, Robert
Publisher:
Vintage Books USA
Subject:
General
Subject:
Other Miscellaneous Crimes
Subject:
Biography
Subject:
Specific Groups - Criminals
Subject:
International
Subject:
Asia - Japan
Subject:
Japan
Subject:
Americans
Subject:
Criminals & Outlaws
Subject:
Americans - Japan - Tokyo
Subject:
Zappetti, Nicola
Subject:
World History-Japan
Copyright:
2000
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Vintage Departures
Publication Date:
20000931
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
400
Dimensions:
8 x 5.2 x 0.8 in 0.875 lb
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Related Subjects

Biography » General
History and Social Science » Asia » Japan » Contemporary 1945 to Present
History and Social Science » Crime » Criminology
History and Social Science » Crime » General
History and Social Science » Crime » True Crime
History and Social Science » Politics » United States » Foreign Policy
History and Social Science » World History » Japan

Tokyo Underworld: The Fast Times and Hard Life of an American Gangster in Japan Used Trade Paper
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Product details 400 pages Vintage Books USA - English 9780375724893 Reviews:
"Review" by , "A fascinating look at some fascinating people who show how democracy advances hand in hand with crime in Japan."
"Review" by , "[A] fun book about a wretched character....[F]undamentally this is a yarn rather than a tome."
"Review" by , "Zappetti's life would hold anyone's interest."
"Review" by , "Excellent....An irreverent, subversive and entertaining yarn that enlightens readers about important aspects of Japanese history and the shadowy world of power."
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