Tokyo 20/20 Vision by Christopher Hood
The Blurb:
In 2019, as Japan hosted the Rugby World Cup, Typhoon Hagibis brought havoc to the organisation of the event and to the country as a whole. 2020 and Tōkyō is the host city for the world’s biggest sporting event, the Summer Olympics. Japan has done everything it can to ensure that the games will be remembered for the sports, that the country and its people will be noted for their hospitality, that these will be the best games ever. But not everyone wants the games to be a success. Some want it to be remembered for something completely different. Tokyo 20/20 Vision follows photojournalist ‘Rock’ Iwakura and journalist Eri Amadera as they become caught up in the plan for the Olympic games to be disrupted.
About Christopher Hood:
I am an academic and author. I became interested in Japan whilst at high school at Concord College, Shrewsbury. I went on to study Business Studies and Japanese at Sheffield University. I then spent a year on the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme, being based in Seto, Aichi prefecture. After that I returned to Sheffield to do a PhD in Japanese studies before working in academia. I continue to do research about Japan, particularly related to inter-city transportation. I have worked as the Director of Japanese Studies at Cardiff University and served as the President of the British Association for Japanese Studies. In 2016 I was awarded a Certificate of Commendation from the Japanese Ambassador to the UK for my service to contributing to the deepening of mutual understanding and friendship between Japan and UK. My books include: Tokyo 20/20 Vision, Hijacking Japan, Japan: The Basics, Osutaka: A Chronicle of Loss in the World’s Largest Single Plane Crash, Dealing with Disaster in Japan: Responses to the Flight JL123 Crash, Shinkansen: From Bullet Train to Symbol of Modern Japan, and Japanese Education Reform: Nakasone’s Legacy. You can follow me on social media via: Twitter: @HoodCP Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Christopher.P.Hood/ Webpage: https://hoodcp.wordpress.com/
My Review:
I am so pleased that Dr Christopher Hood an academic who was appointed in 2016, President of the British Association for Japanese Studies (BAJS), has turned to writing fiction. Having read 'Hijacking Japan,' a fast-paced thriller, with its unique narrative that bridges the social and cultural nuances between western society and Japan, I knew that 'Tokyo 20/20 Vision" would not disappoint. A British Olympic cyclist is kidnapped and left for dead in the woods. Found by a journalist Eri Amadera and her photographer 'Rock' Iwakura, and taken to hospital, Eri, a well-known celebrity in Japan, is kidnapped. It becomes clear that whoever the kidnapper is, he wants to disrupt the Olympics as much as he can.
