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MODERN JAPANESE CUISINE: Food, Power and National Identity. By Katarzyna J. Cwiertka. London: Reaktion Books (distributed by the University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL), 2006. 240 pp. (B&W photos, illus.). US$40.00, cloth. ISBN 978-1-86189-298-0.
Until less than a decade ago, scholarly works on Japanese food were notable by their absence. Gwiertka's new book is a welcome addition to this literature. The driving thesis of this book is the exploration of the historical and political processes and influences from abroad-nowadays called "globalization"-that have shaped Japanese cuisine. This effect has become most notable in the nineteenth and subsequent centuries, as Japan has become more exposed to the West.
Following a brief introduction in which the author outlines her theoretical framework, subsequent chapters outline the various stages of the transformation of Japanese cuisine from the nineteenth century. These include the influence of the West upon the opening of Japan; urban...