Our man in Tokyo : an American ambassador and the countdown to Pearl Harbor / Steve Kemper.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kemper, Steve, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Grew, Joseph C. (Joseph Clark), 1880-1965.

Grew, Joseph C.

United States--Foreign relations--Japan.

United States.

Japan--Foreign relations--United States.

Japan.

United States--Foreign relations--1933-1945.

Japan--Foreign relations--1912-1945.

Diplomatic relations.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xiii, 424 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Mariner Books, [2022]

Summary:

"In 1932, Japan was in crisis. Naval officers had assassinated the prime minister. The military had a stranglehold on the government. War with Russia loomed, and propaganda campaigns swept the country, urging schoolchildren to give money to procure planes and tanks. Into this maelstrom stepped Joseph C. Grew, America's most experienced and talented diplomat. When Grew was appointed to serve as ambassador to Japan, not only was the country in turmoil, but its relationship with America also was strained-and rapidly deteriorating. For the next decade, Grew attempted to warn American leaders about the risks of Japan's raging nationalism and rising militarism, while also trying to stabilize Tokyo's increasingly erratic and volatile foreign policy. From domestic terrorism by Japanese extremists, to the global rise of Hitler, to the attack on Pearl Harbor, the events that unfolded during Grew's tenure proved to be pivotal for Japan, and for the world. And his dispatches from the darkening heart of the Japanese empire would prove to be prescient-for his time, and for our own. Drawing on deep research to bring to life this bygone world and the abyss that swallowed it, Our Man in Tokyo is a revealing portrait of man who risked everything to avert another world war, and of a nation whose nationalistic forces proved unstoppable"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: 1. The Mission Begins

2. Settling In

3. Temblors

4. A Rash of Espionage

5. A Year of Small Fires

6. Keeping His Shirt On

7. Lovers and Patriots

8. Bison and Nazis

9. A Deceptive Calm

10. A Cabinet Falls

11. A Swashbuckling Temper

12. Phobias

13. A Purge, an Organ, Another Assassination

14. Insurrection

15. A Lull

16. A Pact

17. Kokutai

18. Quagmire

19. Bombing, Regrets, Bombing, Regrets

20. The Panay Incident

21. Strenuous Stasis

22. Appeasement

23. A New Order

24. Maneuvers from All Directions

25. Abrogation

26. Gallons of Vinegar

27. The Horse's Mouth

28. Fire-Eaters on All Sides

29. A Golden Opportunity

30. Hell-Bent Toward the Axis

31. The Matsuoka Hurricane

32. Green Light

33. A Grim and Cruel Year

34. Darkening

35. A Rumor of Pearl

36. Negotiations

37. Bad Drafts

38. Too Much Matsuoka

39. A Betrayal and a Purge

40. The Freeze

41. The Crossroads of Peace and War

42. Rough Winds and Waves

43. Tense Silence

44. Kabuki

45. A Deadline for Diplomacy

46. Offerings

47. Decision for War

48. Infamy

49. Back Home.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 405-408) and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Kemper, Steve. Our man in Tokyo

ISBN:

9780358064749

0358064740

OCLC:

1291171158