Early Japanese Railways 1853-1914: Engineering Triumphs That Transformed Meiji-era Japan (Tuttle Specials)

This book goes into very fine detail of the history and production of the early Japanese railways. Purchased for the historical aspects and must say that a train /railways enthusiast will love this book. Finally available in paperback, the author spent over twenty years compiling the information presented and I must applaud him for his dedication and obvious love for the topic. The book is full of rare photographs from the time period and believe that a lot of the information is not found anywhere else. Makes a fine addition to the library of Japanese History and/or railways lore.

A beautifully illustrated unique book. It will be hard to find books in English, on this subject. It really fills a gap for those who are interested in the origins of the Japanese railway system. Very recommendable!

Nice book!

This is a lavishly produced book, large format, illustrated with pictures from the period, most of which have never before been published. Many of these are postcards and a surprising number are in hand-tinted colour. There's also quite a bit of realia, including dining car menus. The text is erudite and intelligent, reflecting a good understanding both of Japanese history and railways. The author is American, which creates a few problems for the almost entirely British influenced Japanese railways of the period. Use of terms like mogul for a 2-6-0 would never have occurred on a British railway, in the wider sense of the word, and Japanese railways in the nineteenth century were British in much the same sense that Argentine or Australian railways were. He assumes some knowledge of railway terminology, which is totally reasonable for a book on this topic. The book's strengths are many and, for anyone interested in the topic, it is indispensible. It does have design flaws. The text is too small to make reading comfortable, and the caption and appendix fonts are ludicrously small. For a book this size there are too many words and too many illustrations. Fewer larger illustrations would have made for a better book and so would fewer words in a larger font. The book would have benefited from a serious edit. The early chapters could have been reduced to a few paragraphs. The lack of editing is also evident in some errors in the text. Even the dreaded it's as a possessive makes an unwelcome appearance. Beyer, Peacock and Company always has a comma. These are detail criticisms, however, and the book is strongly recommended. It is a model of how this important topic can be treated. Railways were immensely important in most countries in the second half of the nineteenth century and should form a more central part of historical discourse than they do. Dan Free has done scholarship a great service by putting railways at the centre of Meiji history and I, for one, applaud his efforts. I also look forward to similar books on the railway in other Asian countries.

Fantastic book on the early days of Japanese rail. Very informative and full of great pictures with very good captions (lacking in many books like this). A must purchase for anyone interested in Japanese rail. I hope the author continues with more books taking us up to the present day!

Helped me a lot with a research project as it is a bucket of information on the birth of the railway system in Japan.

Excellent book, fast delivery

Dan Free is a lifetime student of Japanese culture and trains. A litterary Johnny Cash who found his way to Japan instead of the Rockies...This magnificent book is meticulously researched and exquisitely written. I just stumbled upon it and was very intrigued because trains is not something I associate with Japan, being a neophyte...I just could n't put it down! We never think anymore about times when trains were the only means of communication and survival. Only a true passionate man could come up with such a work of art that is even poetic at times. Not to mention the amazing pictures he dug up...The man knew the first rule when you undertake such a daunting project...you won't get to the top unless you start at the bottom. Start at the bottom he did and to the top he got. A must for anybody!

Great book! I really love it! So many details on the history of the railways in Japan! I don't think you can find so much detail anywhere else. To be honest, chapter 0 was great, but chapter 1 and 2 were so detailed it was almost boring (because it's about discussion on who is going to build the first railway). Nethertheless, the fact that someone took time to put this information together is amazing and deserves praise. Already from the front picture of the book, you get a lot of details on where, how, and what is photographed. Absolutely recommended to anyone interested in the railway history. NOTE: this is NOT a book about the technology, but the deep history on the start, development and organization of the railways in Japan.

It is a nice easy reading. On the minus side, of course, is a lack of tecnical detail, above all regarding the locomotives, some photos are too small to see anything without a looking-glass, while some others are clearly oversized. A bit too many travellers’ stories, as the author is more inclined to re-create the atmosphere of early rail transport, rather than write a comprehensive rail history, but it is a nice book overall and given the quality of print makes a most pleasant feel.

英文なのがちょっと惜しい気がしますが 搭載されている写真や図を見るだけでも 面白い本です。

Dieses Buch gibt einen sehr gründlichen Überblick über die frühe japanische Eisenbahngeschichte und ordnet sie im sozialen, politischen und militärstrategischen Kontext der Meiji-Ära ein. Leider ist das Lektorat der Kindle-Ausgabe eher mittelmäßig (in einem Absatz finden sich z. B. drei verschiedene Schreibweisen für Ōtsu).

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