Our Land Was A Forest: An Ainu Memoir

This book is a beautiful and moving personal account of the Ainu, the native inhabitants of Hokkaidō, Japan's northern island, whose land, economy, and culture have been absorbed and destroyed in recent centuries by advancing Japanese. Based on the author's own experiences and on stories passed down from generation to generation, the book chronicles the disappearing world—and courageous rebirth—of this little-understood people. Kayano describes with disarming simplicity and frankness the pe...