History, Memory, and Politics in Postwar Japan, a compilation of papers by members of the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research’s Political and Diplomatic Review project, has been published as part of the Japan Library’s “acclaimed Japanese books in translation” series.

The book was edited by Iokibe Kaoru, Komiya Kazuo, Hosoya Yuichi, and Miyagi Taizo—principal members of the Political and Diplomatic Review Project—and published by Lynne Rienner Publishers in March 2020.

The authors explore Japan’s historical narratives and their impact on both domestic politics and diplomatic relations, as they have evolved from 1946 to the present. Japan shares centuries of intertwined history with its neighbors, but how that history should be perceived continues to be disputed, particularly with regard to World War II.

Presenting the results of more than a decade of collaborative research, the book promotes an understanding not only of Japanese politics but also of how the historical narratives that we embrace have far-reaching consequences.

Originally issued in Japanese in March 2017 by University of Tokyo Press as Sengo Nihon no rekishi ninshiki (Historical Perception in Postwar Japan), History, Memory, and Politics may be purchased from Lynne Rienner Publishers, Amazon, and other booksellers.