One of the major on-going debates to be
found modern Japanese history is about the role Emperor Hirohito played in the
war. Was he blameless — as decided by the American occupying forces after the
way, or was he an architect and director of Japan’s action?
Hirohito And The Making Of Modern Japan comes
down firmly on the latter side. Author Herbert P. Bix offers a long, detailed,
and insightful look at the reign of the Showa emperor. The book peels back the
story that Hirohito was a powerless rubber stamp monarch during the Second
World War and instead was a key force behind the war in China and Japan's
disastrous participation on the Pacific front.
At times the wartime politics got a little
hard to track (mostly because of a lack of a straight timeline) but the post
war section about all the efforts - US and Japanese - to shield the emperor
from blame was brilliant.
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