Abroad in Japan: The No. 1 Sunday Times Bestseller
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THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER
‘Chris Broad explores Japan in all its quirky glory..Endlessly fascinating!’
Will Ferguson, author of Hokkaido Highway Blues
‘Carves a unique path across Japan bringing him into contact with far too many cats, heartening renewal in Tohoku, and even pizza with Ken Watanabe.’
Iain Maloney, author of The Only Gaijin in the Village
‘Fascinating, fact-packed and very funny..An excellent and enjoyable read for the Japan-curious. I loved it and learned a lot.’
Sam Baldwin, author of For Fukui’s Sake: Two years in rural Japan
When Englishman Chris Broad landed in a rural village in northern Japan he wondered if he’d made a huge mistake. With no knowledge of the language and zero teaching experience, was he about to be the most quickly fired English teacher in Japan’s history?
Abroad in Japan charts a decade of living in a foreign land and the chaos and culture clash that came with it. Packed with hilarious and fascinating stories, this book seeks out to unravel one the world’s most complex cultures.
Spanning ten years and all forty-seven prefectures, Chris takes us from the lush rice fields of the countryside to the frenetic neon-lit streets of Tokyo. With blockbuster moments such as a terrifying North Korean missile incident, a mortifying experience at a love hotel and a week spent with Japan’s biggest movie star, Abroad in Japan is an extraordinary and informative journey through the Land of the Rising Sun.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Penguin (28 Mar. 2024) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 320 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1804992224 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1804992227 |
| Dimensions | 12.7 x 3.5 x 19.8 cm |
by ArcShadow
I really enjoyed reading how Chris arrived in Japan, about finding his confidence and footing completely in the deep end in a very different country. Even if you are not familiar with the Abroad in Japan YouTube channel or podcast, the book doesn’t overly focus on YouTube or the minutiae of video editing and instead, you can appreciate the opportunities that have come from it and the abiding interest the author has for Japan. It is also worth noting that the book is really well written in a friendly and approachable style, which I think regular viewers/listeners will appreciate.
by Connor
I don’t if it was our similar sense of humour, or his spectacular storytelling, or perhaps his ever present ability to be in the right place at the right time, exploring an island of mystery and intrigue, but everything was so captivating and heart-warming, like I was right there living through the experiences page by page.
I have followed the Abroad in Japan YouTube channel for quite a while, always being captivated in an envious way as Chirs explores Japan’s hidden gems, eats it’s delightful cuisine, and meets it’s uniquely interesting residents. I’ve also enjoyed his serious appreciation for Japan’s struggles and the ever changing landscape of an island that was once far removed from the outside world.
When I heard he was writing a book detailing his long ten years in the Land of the Rising Sun, I was beyond delighted, and when at last it went out for pre-order I didn’t even question handing over my money for the hardback.
Whether you know of Chirs and his YouTube channel, or are just mesmerised by the tenured history and cultural revelations of Japan, this book is worth every minute of your time. You will laugh at his humour, be warmed by his encounters, but above all will come to understand the possibility of the impossible.
A well written book of memories, wrtitten by a man of inspirational quality.
by Stormkhan
I have been watching the Abroad in Japan channel for many years now. I was slightly worried that the book would just be a written summary of all of the videos over the years. While there certainly were some familiar elements, the book added fresh anecdotes that made it a really enjoyable read. Chris’ s sense of humor was always a big factor for coming back for the new content. This book certainly had that in large quantity as well as giving insights into his deeper thoughts while going through it all.
In a way, Abroad in Japan (both the book and Youtube channel) has been one large documentary about Japan, giving an honest (both good and bad) non-native view of the country. I have not had the opportunity to visit Japan yet but thanks to Chris’s work, I almost feel like I have experienced it first hand. Having said that, I have a growing wish to go and experience a lot of it for myself. From the onsens to a perilous climb up Mount Fuji, I hope to one day have the chance to go through a fraction of what you have had the chance to experience in Japan. Your journey throughout Japan over the past decade was certainly inspiring and humbling.
Thank you for bringing our attention to the somewhat hidden gems in the Land of Rising Suns…wishing you many more sun rises there.
by Stormkhan
A young man, fresh out of an English university follows a whim and takes a chance: to relocate for more than a year in a country that he has little knowledge of, no language, in a new job – no experience!
Ten years later …
This book is informative, realistic, and highly entertaining. The author, Chris Broad, is happy to embrace the good of the country and culture he immersed himself in, as well as the bad, the problematic and the downright strange!
By coming with few preconceptions, he manages to overcome culture shock, isolation, a lack of direction and confronts the difference from his own upbringing in the UK to his new home. He seems not to look at it with an ‘outsiders’ eye but a dispassionate one.
In writing style, he’s passionate yet not overconfident. He ‘speaks’ well because he’s more considerate of his role – a narrator and witness. While he’s no expert, he downplays what becomes apparent – his willingness to learn and embrace his new setting.
As he says, he’s been criticised on social media for presenting a ‘warts and all’ account … but this comes from experience and actual immersion. At least he’s lived there for more than a holiday, and seen more than a movie while sitting in the West!
In conclusion, This book isn’t a guide book as such, but part account of his experiences, part informative and interesting provider of trivial yet somehow important information, but most of all a reflective and appreciative account of a society so different from his own Western experience that he demonstrates a real love of the place.
Highly recommended, if only for the humour of the Fried-Chicken-Addicted-Bear and Doctor Jelly!