A Ride in the Neon Sun: A Gaijin in Japan

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