Nihongo: In Defence of Japanese
Published in Hardcover by Athlone Pr (1986)
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Clears up misunderstandings about the Japanese language
Fallen Soldier: Memoir of a Civil War Casualty
Published in Paperback by Elliott & Clark Pub (1996)
Authors: William J. Miller, Clyde B. Kernek, and Andrew Recollections of a Prisoner of War Roy
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Interesting but badly edited
No Ordinary Soldier
Unique, compelling
A Japanese Reader: Graded Lessons in the Modern Language
Published in Paperback by Charles E Tuttle Co (1990)
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Dated and too fast-paced
Slightly dated, but solid, intermediate-to-advanced reader
Heavy Duty Reader for the Committed
Japan Country Living: Spirit, Tradition, Style: Postcards
Published in Paperback by Charles E Tuttle Co (1993)
Authors: Shin Kimura, Tuttle, and Roy Andrew Miller
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My vacation photos turned out better
A MUST for Japanophiles
Altaische schamanistische Termini im Japanischen
Published in Unknown Binding by Gesellschaft fèur Natur- und Vèolkerkunde Ostasiens ()
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Altjapanisch FaFuri : zu Priestertum un Schamanismus im vorbuddhistischen Japan
Published in Unknown Binding by Gesellschaft fèur Natur- und Vèolkerkunde Ostasiens e.V. ()
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Japan's Modern Myth
Published in Hardcover by Weatherhill (1982)
Authors: Roy Andrew Miller and Roy A. Milier
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Japanese Language
Published in Paperback by University of Chicago Press (1980)
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Languages and History. Japanese, Korean and Altaic
Published in Hardcover by Orchid Press (1996)
Author: Roy Andrew Miller
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Origins of the Japanese Language: Lectures in Japan During the Academic Year, 1977-78
Published in Textbook Binding by University of Washington Press (1981)
Author: Roy Andrew. Miller
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In this book, Miller sets things straight, explaining certain aspects of the Japanese language in a way that make perfect sense to people who know something of it, and, I think, would also be comprehensible to a non-speaker.
Readers of Miller's earlier book, *Japan's Modern Myth*, may wonder how this differs. While *Nihongo* complements the earlier book, they differ considerably. First, the older one is much more concerned with the *nihonjinron* angle; the newer one with the actual syntax and lexicon of the language, and the allegation (which he roundly refutes) that somehow it is inherently vague. Secondly, while the older one was great fun to read (at least if you weren't one of Miller's targets), it was intemperate; and its repetitiveness and roundabout way of arguing made one wonder whether Miller was satirizing his targets as well as debunking them, or whether their illogic had simply gone to his head. By contrast, *Nihongo*, while it pulls no punches, is utterly convincing and admirably straightforward.
The price of this hardback will probably limit its appeal to libraries. Any library that has half a dozen or more books about Japan should certainly buy this one as well, for its good sense about the language. And the publisher might consider a belated paperback edition for a wider market, for example learners of Japanese seeking inoculation against some of the sillier things said about it by the most highly respected authorities.
(Now please move on to a second book that complements this: Peter N Dale's *The Myth of Japanese Uniqueness*.)