This volume portrays the daily life of ordinary Japanese civilians on the home front during World War Two. Drawing extensively on wartime records and early postwar recollections of people who lived through the war era, the book reveals a surprisingly cohesive society that bore up remarkably well. Originally published by W.W. Norton and Company in 1978.

"...a superbly researched account of Japan which shuns melodrama and describes how the war affected the social, political, and cultural life of the Japanese people." - The Washington Post

"...an important and well written book of social history." - Journal of American Academy of Political Social Science

"A pathbreaking exploration..." - CHOICE

"...a pioneering social history..." - Library Journal

"...fascinating..." - Publishers Weekly

"...a superbly researched account of Japan which shuns melodrama and describes how the war affected the social, political, and cultural life of the Japanese people." - The Washington Post

"...an important and well written book of social history." - Journal of American Academy of Political Social Science

"A pathbreaking exploration..." - CHOICE

"...a pioneering social history..." - Library Journal

"...fascinating..." - Publishers Weekly