Tales of Old Japan: Folklore, Fairy Tales, Ghost Stories and Legends of the Samurai Paperback – March 24, 2005

I purchased this book thinking I might use it for my 3rd grade classroom as we studied Japan, and all of Asia as Geography in school. I gleaned ideas from the book, but I believe it to be one to be enjoyed by older students. As an elementary teacher, it was not much help. As an adult who lived in Japan for two years, I found the stories very interesting.

I have already read this book for a second time. The tales are wonderful and informative and there are sections with the authors eyewitness accounts of an actual seppuku and marriage ceremony in 19th century Japan among other things. A wonderful addition to my personal library.

This book is an excellent collections of stories and folk-lore from pre-modern Japan, and an excellent resource for those such as myself looking for an addition to a library to assist in building readings for a college-level course on Japanese culture and history. It has a wide diversity of sources and stories, and is generally well-edited and clearly presented. I would recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in the land of the samurai, kabuki and no drama, the tea ceremony, shinto, and Soto and Rinzai Zen buddhist practice.My only complaint, and it is not concerning the book itself or the author's respectable work, is this is yet another in a long line of books I have receieved since becoming an Amazon Prime member that, despite paying extra for the membership privileges, arrived in a damaged condition which is clearly the result of shoddy standards or training for Amazon packagers, and insufficient use of protective packaging. The cover had clearly been bent in several places and used to pick up the book, leaving significant enough creases that it does not sit flat when laid on a flat surface. When I paid shipping costs for any package less than $25.00, Amazon was excellent in guaranteeing the condition new books would arrive in would, in fact, be new. Now they have even made it difficult to directly contact them regarding a damaged book, insisting you return the work and they receive it before they even will consider simply sending you a replacement, let alone a refund. I've complained to Customer Service a number of times about this, but this has not solved the problems, which seem systemic and symptomatic of the bottom-line mentality of the company. Books like "Tales of Old Japan," with its particularly attractive cover, deserve better treatment than what Amazon provides.

A glimpse of Japan in the mid-1800's, a time of massive societal and cultural change, by a surprisingly enlightened Victorian gentleman whose sympathetic telling of not only Japanese folk tales but of Japanese culture and society provides unusually accurate insight about the mysterious Japanese. Mitford's admiration of the Japanese resonates throughout dispelling the myth of the myopic Victorian.Sadly, for him and his family, he sold this book straight out thereby never receiving royalties for this perennial steady seller!Interesting aside, Mitford is the paternal grandfather of the famous and infamous Mitford sisters.

I highly recommend this book to anybody that wants to learn about Japanese history. The book includes the story of the 47 ronin, a must for students of Japanese Culture and martial artist, and stories, folktales and sermons prior to the 20th century.

amazing stories

This reads a bit like Shakespeare had Shakespeare written about Japanese legends. In other words, it's difficult to follow sometimes. If you've ever read The Tale of Genji, this reads similar to that in my opinion. I'm interested enough in the history culture of old Japan that I don't mind it too much, but I'll admit the book wasn't what I was expecting or hoping for. On an upside, It's very detailed. I do like that being that I lived in Japan for several years, and the descriptions of the landscapes and locations feel very familiar to me. If you're looking for historical legends and folklore, you may enjoy this book. If you're looking for more in the way of mostly old ghost stories from Japan, this book may leave you disappointed.

It was a gift for my niece who is studying Cultural Anthro. An excellent addition to a library on world wide Folke Lore.