As the title implies, this is not a broad overview of the history of Japan, but a closer look at Japan during war time, edited by Louis G. Perez, a professor of Japanese history at Northern Illinois University. Covering a wide array of topics, such as politics, philosophy, events, people, and locations, this resource provides a very good introduction to several periods in Japanese history.
Published by the noted history publisher ABC‐Clio, the online version of the encyclopedia, as reviewed here, offers intuitive left hand navigation that lists the outline of the book, and the letter headings expand as articles under that letter are reviewed. For example, selecting Comfort Women from the Contents takes the user to the article in question, and all of the entries under C are shown. Articles listed in the contents include the page numbers for easy reference, and page numbers appear at points in the articles where the transition to the next page would be. This makes it easy for users – whether they are using a print or online version – to connect information to the source.
After the Contents, two sections – Guide to Related Topics by Era and “Guide to Related Topics by Subject – help users gain context, locate additional information, or refine topics as needed.
Each article begins with the author of the article prominently displayed. Oddly, however, on some browsers, it appeared that the author's name was larger than the title of the article (although not required, it would be a nice feature to have the author's name linked to the biographical information included in the list of contributors). The articles themselves are concise and informative, written at a level high school students and undergraduates would easily understand. References to related articles are linked, taking the user directly to the article noted. At the end of each article is a list of books and articles, many scholarly, providing further information on the topic.
Additional helpful resources follow the main encyclopedic section of the book. The first, Primary Documents, includes such resources as the Seventeen‐Article Constitution from the year 604, the Imperial Rescript on Education from 1890, multiple documents relating to the annexation of Korea, and more. Each resource includes a citation its original English language source. A timeline of major military, political, and cultural events, a glossary, and a bibliography provide further research support. The encyclopedia concludes with information on the editor and contributors, as well as an index. The contributors primarily consist of professors and researchers in Japanese studies, history, and military studies.
Japan at War is a clear, easy‐to‐use reference on Japanese history, excellent for libraries supporting undergraduate history, Asian studies, and military history programmes.
