This new translation of Yoshida's memoirs will be welcome for all who wish to understand postwar Japanese history and leadership better, especially in light of its inclusion of previously unavailable sections on the Korean War, the Japanese imperial household, and other matters. Here are Yoshida's recollections and views on the Occupation and MacArthur, postwar economic recovery and growth, labor activism, and Japan's place in the international community. Here also are insights into the personalities and behavior of key figures in postwar Japan, and on events since 1945 that engaged the attention of both Japanese and Americans. Read in conjunction with such works as John Dower's studies of the Occupation and Yoshida himself, this memoir will give students of postwar Japan an invaluable grasp of what happened and how to evaluate it. A deep debt of gratitude is owed the translators and editors for providing this work. Essential.

Choice Reviews

Yoshida's book remains good political biography.

Japanese Studies

Offering fascinating primary-source reading, Yoshida Shigeru: Last Meiji Man provides rich detail about the rise and fall of Japan's 20th-century empire and the making of modern-day Japan. Vividly told by someone who was there and whose grandson is now making Japanese foreign policy, this book is a must for historians, political scientists, and students alike.

Donald M. Goldstein, University of Pittsburgh