The Rising Sun

The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire, 1936-1945

By: John Toland

Narrated by: Tom Weiner

This Pulitzer Prize-winning history of World War II chronicles the dramatic rise and fall of the Japanese empire, from the invasion of Manchuria and China to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Told from the Japanese perspective, The Rising Sun is, in the author’s words, "a factual saga of people caught up in the flood of the most overwhelming war of mankind, told as it happened - muddled, ennobling, disgraceful, frustrating, full of paradox."

In weaving together the historical facts and human drama leading up to and culminating in the war in the Pacific, Toland crafts a riveting and unbiased narrative history.

©1970 John Toland (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

An Enduring Mystery

Allow me for a moment to indulge in some possibly fruitless speculation as I put myself into the mind of one of Audible.com's executives. At issue is this: I have, at 41 hours, a *monumental* piece of written material, and I'm going to need someone good—really, really good—to do the narration. After all, even though I've never narrated a thing in my life, I would imagine that doing forty-one hours of it would be monumentally gruelling, requiring every tool in a highly skilled speaker's toolbox to pull off.

So I would imagine that a job like this book would not be for the amateur, or first-time narrator, by any means. This is a book mainly about World War II from the Japanese perspective, so one of the first talents I, as the Audible.com executive would be looking for in a narrator for this book would be—and this can hardly be a surprising priority—the ability to handle the Japanese language, albeit in English. After all, in this one book alone, I would off the top of my head guess that more than one thousand separate Japanese proper names, places, terms and other objects of Nipponese vocabulary are included herein—quite possibly twice that.

So my priority, as I see the task for any sensible executive looking for a narrator for this book—above *all other considerations*—would be the ability to speak Japanese, or at least to have more than a beginner's facility in the Japanese language . This is not a difficult thing to imagine. All the professionality, speaking tone, timbre, resonance, emotional range would be all useless if the narrator mangled any of the Japanese names or other vocabulary . . .

So why, is my question here, did this priority seemingly go out the window in this case?

I admit that, as someone who lived in Japan for five years and who now teaches (beginning) Japanese, I am more than a little sensitive to this issue. But how on EARTH could a high-ranking human resource manager at a multimillion dollar company not at least have asked a Japanese person to approve the narrator of such a huge, laborious and important a project?

Don't mistake me. Mr. Weiner's narration is frequently impeccable, very well balanced, and as a narrator he is outstanding. But his pronunciation of the Japanese language is, quite frankly, atrocious.

Take, for example, the proper name "Sato." But then take, for example, another quite common name, "Seito." In Japanese, there is no confusion: one is pronounced "SAY-to" and the other is pronounced "SAH-to." But if the final "o" in the name were, as is quite common, be elongated into a double "o" (usually represented in English with a bar above the vowel) then the name would be a quite different one.

I would not expect a narrator to be cognizant of the last point, but I *would* expect that the narrator not pronounced "Sato" as "Sayto" one minute and then in the very next sentence "Sahto."

And regrettably throughout—indeed, pervasively—Mr Weiner mispronounces so many names that one is sorely tempted to stop listening after the first couple of chapters—it's that egregious.

Tomoyuki Yamashita's last name should be pronounced as "YamAHSH'TA," with no "I" sound in the last syllable. Instead in Mr. Weiner's reading it becomes "Yahma-SHEE-tah," which to anyone with even a nodding acquaintance with the Japanese language is so irritatingly grating that it actually becomes almost unlistenable . . . just imagine a book about Hollywood in which someone pronounces Stephen Spielberg as "Stephen SPYLEberg" and you'll sort of get the picture.

I mean this is not just a marathon book about World War II . . . this is about the *Japanese viewpoint* in a book on World War II.

Now it's quite possible that to most listeners this is not a factor at all, but for me it's more a question of when it came to choosing a narrator for this epic, *What was anyone THINKING?*

A Tour de Force

What made the experience of listening to The Rising Sun the most enjoyable?

The author intertwined the politics and culture of pre-WWII Japan into a compelling storyline. The emperor had practically no control over the military whose constant aggression led to the inevitable war. It is truly fascinating that the Japanese perspective of the lead up to the war is so different than the western perception. I was also surprised how much the Japanese regarded the war to be racially motivated - the oppressed brown man versus the white western colonial oppressor, and how many of the Asian countries the Japanese overran bought into that viewpoint.The description of the war in the Pacific was expert and compelling. The difference between the strategy and tactic used by both sides was striking. The devotion and commitment of the Japanese soldier to the emperor and his country was difficult for me to fathom, yet their regard for individual life was practically non-existent.If you ever had any question as to whether dropping the atomic bomb was necessary, this book will resolve any doubt.

What other book might you compare The Rising Sun to and why?

The obvious comparison is to the masterwork The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. In many ways The Rising Sun is superior. The author makes this book read more like a ""can't put it down" work of fiction than a history book, while at the same time being just as thorough and comprehensive with the historical facts.

Which scene was your favorite?

There were many, but I think a response to this topic potentially can produce a spoiler.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There were many, but as stated above, I think a response to this topic potentially can produce a spoiler.

Any additional comments?

This is a remarkable work. It has substance, compelling characters, a world changing story line, political and racial insights and is still remarkably entertaining.

John Toland's book The Rising Sun

This book is mostly a survey of the brutal fighting in the Pacific Theater of Operation between the Empire of Japan and the Allies who were ultimately victorious. My grandfather was 3rd Battalion commander, 305th Infantry Regiment, 77th Infantry Division, U.S. Army. His path in that war was Guam in the summer of 1944, The Phillipines on Leyte in the fall and winter of 1944-45 and the final big battle at Okinawa starting on 01 April 1945.

Thorough and enlightening

I was a bit nervous when I saw this was over 50 hours, but it’s been on my list since I heard Dan Carlin talking about it and I can say it was well with the listen. Amazing insight into all the intricate workings of the Japanese government and military leadership. Great storytelling. Harrowing experiences. Wonderful narration.

Excellent

Anyone looking to expand their perception of eastern culture and The war in the Pacific should thoroughly enjoy this book.

Great audio book!

Any additional comments?

Great history that tells a different perspective, giving proper historical viewpoints not normally considered. Text is well read and interesting.

Insightful History Of The Pacific In WW2

Some historical accounts need to be told even if they are dark. This is one. Balanced and fair in presenting history from both sides. Many good lessons can be learned from this account.

Glad I got this book !

Interesting to see the Pacific War through the eyes of the Japanese . From the Emperor to the grunt .
I don't know if I'll ever understand tha fanaticism , but this book gives you a look into how far the Japanese were willing to go . More importantly what could & did happen to those who didn't agree with pointless loss of life .
Of course , both sides of the conflict are represented here . But the focus is on the Japanese . I highly recommend for those interested in the Pacific War .

Riveting

Wow. WW2 from the Japanese perspective. Great job of choosing what to include vs what to gloss over. Keeping track of all the characters
was hard, and understanding the mindset of the Japanese courage was cursory, and overall it was fascinating to see the uS in the aggressor role.

Excellent Historical overview of Pacific War

A thorough and comprehensive review of the political, economic, cultural, and military dynamics of the Pacific theater from the perspective of the Japanese empire.