Today, Japan is famous for cheap consumer electronics, fuel-efficient cars, and anime. It’s easy to forget that one hundred years ago it ranked as perhaps the most militarily aggressive nation on earth. Japan’s occupation of Manchuria in 1931 is a case in point. In fact, it’s an easy temptation to compare Japan’s occupation of Manchuria […]
Tag: China
The Last Rose of Shanghai – Rob’s Latest Book Review
I had high hopes for The Last Rose of Shanghai by Weina Dai Randel. High enough that I semi-broke one of my personal rules, which is to avoid World War 2 historical fiction. Why do I avoid World War 2 books? Because they’re so ubiquitous. Every writer has a World War 2 novel, it seems. […]
How to Read Oracle Bones
The oracle bones of ancient China rank among my favorite historical artifacts. Who doesn’t love mystical techniques to predict the future? Leaders in ancient China needed people who knew how to read oracle bones. Sure, the success of reading oracle bones was spotty. Absent data to inform a prediction, all attempts to predict the future […]