FAQ
Where in Japan is Yamanaka?
Here’s a map on Google Earth. Yamanaka Onsen (hot spring) is part of Kaga Kaga City (actually a collection of small towns, includign Yamanaka), in Ishikawa Prefecture.
Ishikawa is on the western side of Honshu, Japan's main island, along the Japan Sea. It's in a region called Hokuriku, that also includes the prefectures of Fukui, Toyama, and Niigata (all along the Japan Sea).
The nearest big, well-known city is Kanazawa, about an hour away by car.
Is it the same as Yamanakako-mura?
No, that is in Yamanashi, a different prefecture. The Library of Congress initially made an error categorizing Water, Wood, and Wild Things as about that area.
What crafts and activities are covered in the book, Water, Wood, and Wild Things?
sake, also known as nihonshu, and by the know misnomer “rice wine”
onsen, Japanese hot spring baths
Yamanaka bushi, the folk music (minyo/min’yo) and dance
tea ceremony (sado/chado/chanoyu), omotesenke school
Yamanaka shikki, laquerware, and wood turning
urushi lacquer, harvest and processing
wagatabon, wooden trays carved from green chestnut wood
washi, Japanese paper, made from ganpi (gampi), and ganpi harvesting
sansai, foraged vegetables and herbs
samurai style duck hunting at Katano Kamoike, called saka-ami ryo
Japanese rice cultivation and natural farming
Local Japanese vegetables called Kaga yasai, and growing adzuki beans
Yamanaka’s festival, called Koi Koi Matsuri
Where is the best place to buy a copy of Water, Wood, and Wild Things?
Anywhere you like to buy books! Signed copies are available at Kitchen Arts & Letters, Books Are Magic, and Elliot Bay Book Company! If you buy it from an online retailer, would you be so kind as to leave a review? There is also an audio book read by the author.