IT TOOK 30 years and the reading of 800 books on every aspect of Japanese life, but ­finally Sachiko Iwayama has produced a book of her own.

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The 79-year-old Edge Hill author has condensed thousands of years of Japanese ­history, culture and traditions into a thoroughly readable and engaging 402-page account, The Events that Shaped the ­History of Japan.

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Sachiko says the idea for the book first began to form after arriving in Australia from Japan 50 years ago.

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“From time to time, I heard Australians make comments like ‘in Japan, women don’t have a say. Wives listen to their husbands and follow their instructions’. Or, ‘Japan was a samurai country from the ­beginning. That’s why the ­people are combative’,” ­Sachiko says.

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“I thought they were misguided, but I couldn’t correct their views as I had little ­knowledge of Japan’s history.

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“About 30 years ago, ­I arrived at a stage of my life where I could afford to spend time reading and thinking. I decided to find out more about Japan and life there in the past. I visited Japan every year, travelled widely and bought relevant books, which I shipped back to Australia.”

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