Klaus Schlichtmann has written an impressive, ambitious book in which he traces the evolution of Japanese pacifism and internationalism through the career of an eminent diplomatist, Shidehara, and in the framework of the history of global affairs and thought. Anyone interested in the shift from prewar militarism to postwar pacifism in Japan, as well as in the contemporary debate on the revision of its "peace constitution," would find here an excellent guide to connecting developments in Japan to those elsewhere. An admirable study that corrects the "exceptionalist" accounts of Japanese history that still abound in the literature and places it in a comparative and transnational context.

Akira Iriye, Charles Warren Research Professor of American History, Harvard University

This book details the origins and principled development of Japan's peaceful diplomacy during the 1920s until the the Japanese military frustrated it by the Pearl Harbor attack; but war did not deter the architect of the policy, Shidehara Kijuro, who later crafted Article IX in Japan's postwar Constitution. It continues to inspire all nations to deal peaceably with their neighbors. Japan in the World is a real contribution to the field.

John F. Howes, Professor Emeritus, Department of Asian Studies, University of British Columbia

It is quote refreshing to see that Schlichtmann takes Shidehara head-on….the book provides an in-depth examination of Shidehara's foreign policy while also analyzing the crucial role that he played in maintaining the nation's course firmly upon the path of Japan's traditional internationalist foreign policy.

Pacific Affairs