Product Description

It's not easy landing unprepared in a country like Japan. The eccentricities of the calendar, the indecipherable postal system, not to mention the alien alphabet, language and culture, have all to be confronted before the disorientated traveller can feel at ease. Trying to ride a bicycle through the streets of one of the most congested cities in the world would seem to compound your problems. For Josie Dew, however, with over 200,000 miles already clocked up in the saddle few things could be more challenging - or for the reader of A RIDE IN THE NEON SUN, more wonderfully entertaining. From Kawasaki to Kagoshima, Odawara to Okinawa, Josie discovered a nation rich in dazzling contrasts. The neon and concrete were there in greater abundance than even she had imagined, but so too were bottomless baths, love burgers, long-tailed cocks, musical toilet rolls, oriental Elvis's, cardboard police and a sense of fun belying the population's rigourous work ethic. Far from being the reserved race that she had heard about, the Japanese welcomed her into their homes with bountiful smiles and bows - and skin-scorching baths.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53738 in Books
• Published on: 2004-08-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 704 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Fast paced and humorous, Josie Dew's sometimes absurd experiences riding through Japan are delightfully recorded in A ride in the Neon Sun. Cycle enthusiast or not, anyone considering a trip to Japan would do well to prepare themselves with this book. A Ride in the Neon Sun, informative and coupled with the author's social observations, provides the reader with a true picture of a country and its people. Josie Dew embraces the culture of Japan in a whirlwind Tour de Nippon, told from the saddle of her bicycle.

For the tested Far-Eastern traveller or the tourist ready to venture further afield, A Ride in the Neon Sun is an eye-opening account of a " 'Gaijin', (foreigner) in Japan." Dew's social observations are honest and detailed. Her appreciation and acceptance of the bizarre epitomise the open-mindedness with which one must explore different cultures. Dew takes us on a wonderful yet wacky trip around Japan. She does not simply list the events as they happen, but instead explains the Whys?, Whens? and Hows?.

From Tokyo to Yokohama, armed with an ineffectual phrasebook including key conversation pieces such as: "Well, by gosh, I am from Missouri" and her trusty bicycle, the reader is introduced to all that is Japan. A Ride in the Neon Sun is set to follow in the successful slipstream of her previous books, The Wind in My Wheels, (Shortlisted for the 1992 British Books Travel Writer of the Year Award.) and Travels in a Strange State. --Jon Smith

Review
'A female Bill Bryson...A Ride in the Neon Sun is full of delights' TLS 'Entertaining...Josie Dew has an eye for the absurd, and she found it aplenty in the fascinatingly diverse culture of Japan' - IRISH NEWS 'Josie is an acute observer of foreign lands. A highly engaging travel companion' - MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS '...detailed, insightful and often downright hilarious' - SUNDAY TRIBUNE (Ireland)

IRISH NEWS
`Entertaining...Josie Dew has an eye for the absurd, and she found it aplenty in the fascinatingly diverse culture of Japan'

Customer Reviews

Best Travel Book Ever
I don't like travel books. I found Bryson at school very, very dull, and that was my opinion of travel writing: dull.

So why did I read 'A Ride in the Neon Sun'? My grandmother happened upon this book and said it was very funny. Funny? Travel writing? Having an interest in Japan, I thought I'd get a copy.

This book is stunningly well written. It goes into just enough detail, and Dew make many witty observations about Japan. True, she occassionally uses the same jokes over and over again, but the books feels like a journey. It feels like you are exploring Japan with Ms Dew, and her very English sense of humour. She only reiterates what you would really notice over-and-over again.

Basically, whether or not you like travel, this book is a must-read. I sat giggling at this book on the bus, at the bus stop, at lunch, waiting in the street. Anywhere I could read it. And it's lasted well too.

Amazing. Possibly one of the best books I've read for several years now.

Accurate, insightful and funny
Unbeknownst to me, Josie and I cycled through Japan at the same time (my excuse was I was living there at the time and was a "weekend cyclist"). Reading of her travels has brought back many wonderful (and awful) memories. Josie uses a style that makes it quite easy for the reader to gain a "first person" perspective and is highly addictive. My only criticism (and this is aimed at fate rather than Josie) is that the tales end too quickly. "Pah! To all you of short attention span" say I, "not 100 pages less but 200 more......"

For anyone considering going to Japan
My daughter is currently teaching in Japan for two years and so I thought that this book would be helpful to me as an insight to the Japanese culture. I was not disappointed.
From what my daughter has told me and after reading the book, I am compelled to say that the book is an excellent guide to this strange culture. For anyone considering going to Japan and wondering what lies ahead, this is an accurate reflection of the Japanese people.
I found it informative, witty and a great read. This is my first Josie Dew book and I will be looking for more.