The Weight of the Yen

A brilliant account of the developments leading to one of the greatest financial bubbles of all times. Must read for anyone interested in Japan, or financial bubbles, or currencies, or international trade and politics, etc. Murphy makes important references to Karel van Wolferen's The Enigma of Japanese Power: People and Politics in a Stateless Nation, and that is also a must read to understand how Japan power works.

To study Japan as I do without studying its economic side would be like studying Europe but neglecting England, France, Germany, and Italy. This book gave me a great introduction to the nature of the exchange rate's importance and what factors cause its fluctuation. It largely fills one key component (economics) of one's overall study of Japan. As with most outstanding books, reading this one has led me to many other books. You don't need a Phd. in Economics to read this one!

This book is a must read for anyone interested in knowing how the Japanese financial world works, but is so well written that it should be on the bookshelf of anyone who cares about the US-Japan bilateral relationship. Especially if you want to know the truth about how the Japanese economy and financial market has been manipulated by the powerful beaurocracy, this is your book. For those mystified by Japan's "Lost Decade" and why it persists, this book will provide some surprising answers.Just as interesting is the author's analysis of the financial straight jacket that the US and Japan locked themselves into without truly understanding the consequences. Fans of the Reagan Administration will think twice about their hero when they realize the legacy that Supply Side Economics has left in both the US and Japan.At the risk of sounding pretentious, this book really is a true tour-de-force.