This is another group effort, and an excellent example of how well this blogging model can work. Néojaponisme draws on the time and talents of at least four regular contributors who write brief but interesting articles on Japanese culture, covering topics from film and literature to architecture and television. In addition to articles, the blog includes interviews, a short series of podcasts, and book reviews. Recent entries have explored Mt. Fuji’s place in the national psyche and literature, looked at lesser-known works by popular novelist Murakami Haruki, and even answered some questions about insulation in Tokyo buildings for the miserable, shivering creatures who live in them.
This is an especially refreshing effort for those of us who grow quickly tired of “Japanese culture” blogs that stick strictly to the martial arts / tea ceremony end of things or display similar fixations on animé and manga. The Néojaponisme guys may find all the above interesting, and indeed their personal website suggest as much, but as a team they’ve managed to sidestep any single-minded obsessions.
Here or from the sidebar.
