Book Note: Mark D. West, Secrets, Sex, and Spectacle: The Rules of Scandal in Japan and the United States (2007)

I loved Mark D. West's previous book, Law in Everyday Japan: Sex, Sumo, Suicide, and Statutes, and this one did not disappoint. Secrets, Sex, and Spectacle: The Rules of Scandal in Japan and the United States is a scholarly yet accessibly entertaining analysis of what qualifies as scandal in each culture and how each culture deals with the aftermath. Neither of West's books is particularly noirish, but if you're a fan of Japanese noir, his work will enrich your understanding of Japanese culture and deepen your appreciation of Japanese fiction.

Book Note: Mark D. West, Law in Everyday Japan: Sex, Sumo, Suicide, Statutes (2005)

One of my interests is Japanese noir, though I occasionally find these novels tough going due to the sometime inscrutability of Japanese culture. To help make these things more scrutable, I try to mix in a few nonfiction works on Japan, and I have just read a really great one: Mark D. West's Law in Everyday Japan: Sex, Sumo, Suicide, Statutes (2005). Using methods largely from economics, West examines the intersections between laws and social norms as they affect Japanese culture in seven areas, including the management of sumo wresting and the handling of karaoke noise complaints. Probably the most noirish chapters are those dealing with love hotels and debt-suicides. Academic but highly accessible. Witty, too.