CHECK IT OUT

As the crow flies, 5,521 miles separate sister cities Okazaki, Japan,

and Newport Beach.

That gap was condensed this week by Okazaki Mayor Koichi Shabata’s

visit to local shores. Throughout the year, it is bridged by books in a

special collection at the Newport Beach Central Library, purchased with

gifts from our municipal sibling across the sea.

Identified with a “Presented by Okazaki, Japan” bookplate, volumes in

the collection span a gamut of topics, from Japanese history to art,

music, lifestyles and language. Among the most comprehensive is “The

Cambridge Encyclopedia of Japan,” a richly illustrated compilation by 54

experts on Japanese society, religion, politics, literature and the arts.

There are tomes that go back in time to critical periods in Japanese

history. Check out “Japan’s Golden Age: Momoyama” for a sense of the

country from 1573 to 1615 -- one of the most dynamic eras of Asian

social, political and cultural development.

Focus on an earlier era with Time-Life Books’ “What Life Was Like

Among Samurai and Shoguns,” a portrait of Japan between 1000 and 1700,

with essays on courtship, marriage, jealousy and intrigue.

In many ways, the sword is a symbol of Japanese power. View it in

social and historical context with Gregory Albert’s “The Japanese Sword,”

an illustrated survey that draws on the Victoria and Albert Museum’s

magnificent collection of Asian weaponry.

A gentler topic is the subject of “Gracious Gifts,” a glimpse into how

the Japanese honor their gods, ancestors and lost loved ones.

Anthropologist Charlotte Anderson and her photographer husband Gorazd

Villar capture the elegance of Japanese form in this stunning volume.

A team of artists and historians explore other social rituals in

“Japan, A Living Portrait.” Find incisive essays and more than 140 color

photos that open a door into Japanese painting, architecture, music and

visual arts in this illustrated cultural overview.

For neophyte students of Japanese culture, Asian scholar Lennox

Tierney provides an introduction to the Zen influence on form and

function in “Wabi Sabi, A New Look at Japanese Design.” With this slim,

illustrated volume, take a journey through geisha houses, stone gardens

and Japanese inns.

You can learn about the aesthetics, patterns and colors of traditional

garb with Norio Yamanaka’s “The Book of Kimono.” Or you may want to delve

deeper into the story of where and how the Japanese live with “Japanese

Homes and Lifestyles,” an illustrated history of a people from

prehistoric times to the present.

If all this study inspires a trip across the Pacific, pick up tips for

conversation with “Basic Business Japanese.” Written for those with some

knowledge of Japanese, this is a fine guide for how the language is

actually used today in our sister city’s business environment.

* CHECK IT OUT is written by the staff of the Newport Beach Public

Library. This week’s column is by Melissa Adams in collaboration with

Sara Barnicle. All titles may be reserved from home or office computers

by accessing the catalog at https://www.newportbeachlibrary.org.