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A review by midwinteraz
Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. by Roland Kelts
3.0
This book is only nine years old, but it's already feeling a bit dated. I wish I could find an annotated/footnote version with present-day updates. Kelts does a great job of introducing the creep of Japanese pop culture into mainstream U.S. pop culture, but I think it's come so far since 2006 that it's almost ubiquitous now. We've gone far beyond Pokemon and Akira.
The book generally stuck to an academic overview of things, but I would have appreciated a more personal touch. In particular, I think his chapter on hentai is sorely lacking in a female (or feminist) perspective. It's not just a matter of Americans' puritanism being offended--rape fantasies and sexual violence aren't offensive simply because of their sexual nature. That's a topic that could fill another book, though.
The book generally stuck to an academic overview of things, but I would have appreciated a more personal touch. In particular, I think his chapter on hentai is sorely lacking in a female (or feminist) perspective. It's not just a matter of Americans' puritanism being offended--rape fantasies and sexual violence aren't offensive simply because of their sexual nature. That's a topic that could fill another book, though.