Japanese American Millennials

To commemorate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, this week's review explores the many facets of the Japanese American millennial community

Japanese American Millennials: Rethinking Generation, Community, and Diversity

ed. by Michael Omi, Dana Y. Nakano, and Jeffrey T. Yamashita Temple, 2019
301p bibl index, 9781439918241 $110.50, 9781439918258 $39.95, 9781439918258

Editors Omi (Univ. of California, Berkeley), Nakano (California State Univ, Stanislaus), and Yamashita (Ph.D. candidate, Univ. of California, Berkeley) bring together research on Japanese American millennials in this collection, beginning with an overview of Japanese American studies and the diversity within the Japanese American community. Chapters demonstrate the complex and unique nature of this group by exploring the multiple facets of Japanese American millennials’ lives, including cultural identity, LGBTQ identity, community, culture, spirituality, and religion among various Japanese American communities in both the US and Japan. The volume is divided into five sections: “Sustaining Community,” “Spiritualities,” “Redefining Ethnicity,” “Intersecting Identities,” and “Crossing and Bridging Boundaries.” Each provides analysis, research, and commentary on the impact of ethnicity in shaping this group’s multitudinous perspectives and relationships with family and friends, while navigating multiple identities. Little has been written about the experiences of younger Japanese American generations, so this volume fills the gap, exposing the diversity and intricacies of Japanese Americans. It will be a valuable resource for audiences interested in Asian American studies, particularly Japanese American millennials.

Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels.
Reviewer: 
T. Chan, MIT Libraries
Interdisciplinary Subjects: Asian and Asian American Studies
Subject: Social & Behavioral Sciences – Sociology
Choice Issue: Mar 2020


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