The Shortest History of Japan by Lesley Downer (Old Street, £14.99)
The story of Japan began with a dance, writes Lesley Downer, in her brisk and aptly titled book. Amaterasu, the mythical progenitor of Japan’s imperial line 2,600 years ago, was lured from her cave to peek at the Goddess of Dance and Merriment, and we are off through 246 pages that attempt to skim the history of this complex and often misunderstood country. It’s an impossible task but Downer’s narrative sparkles with a novelist’s flair and an eye for the colourful, such as her account of Charlie Chaplin narrowly missing assassination in Tokyo by young Japanese officers trying to start a war with America (they eventually succeeded). The Japanese capital, Downer’s occasional home, has been levelled and rebuilt twice in the 20th century alone, and enormously destructive natural disasters have been a cruel feature of Japanese history. Yet, its extraordinary culture has survived the vicissitudes of the centuries, and she reminds us that Amaterasu’s shrine is rebuilt every 20 years and has found new life in films and manga. “Far from being a historical relic, she is as alive today as she was before time began.” David McNeill
Our Troubles by Anthony Canavan (Phaeton Publishing, £30)
A young boy in north Belfast sees the Union Jack flying outside the only Protestant house on his street, and understands all the others will be burned. Three teenagers are stopped and threatened at a British checkpoint on their way to the seaside. A man released from Long Kesh struggles to readjust to domestic life and becomes abusive to his wife. A pair of young lovers on either side of the conflict are forced to part. The plainness and clarity of Anthony Canavan’s collection of stories does justice to material that is deeply moving. This is a book that focuses on the experience of ordinary Catholics in north Belfast, and makes felt the endurance and decency that prevail under the most violent conditions. Ruby Eastwood
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No Country for Love by Yaroslav Trofimov (Abacus, £20)
When idealistic teenager Debora Rosenbaum moves to Kharkiv in 1930, she is a true believer in the project to build a brave new world in Soviet Ukraine. Youthful hope turns into deep disillusionment as the horrors of war unfold, along with the heartbreaking loss of the people and places that once seemed so utterly dependable. Debora and her family learn to do what’s necessary to survive, bearing witness to famine, unbridled propaganda and the rise and fall of totalitarian regimes. This compelling and unsentimental love story is the debut novel of award-winning Wall Street Journal writer Yaroslav Trofimov, and it reflects the complex linguistic, cultural and ethnic diversity of the old Soviet bloc. Above all, it’s a love letter to Ukraine and its people’s enduring resilience. Claire Looby
