Best nonfiction book on foreign affairs
AWARD YEAR: 1997
AWARD NAME: The Cornelius Ryan Award 1997
RECIPIENT: Patrick Smith
AFFILIATION: Pantheon Books
HONORED WORK: “Japan: A Reinterpretation”
Smith has produced an intelligent, lucidly written analysis of contemporary Japan. The author gives us a fresh, nuanced, and surprisingly sad picture of a nation that has lost something in its rush to wealth and security, skillfully weaving together a number of themes— the role of women, the impact of cold war politics, and the cult of the Emperor. In his original approach to postwar relations between Japan and the U.S., Smith makes us think of Japan in new ways.
Citation for Excellence:
Dan Oberdorfer
Addison-Wesley
“The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History”