Yakuza ─ Japan's Criminal Underworld

"A fascinating study of how criminal enterprise can infect the very heart of modern capitalism. Here is the backstage world of political influence and organized crime in the world's second largest economy... by far the most detailed and even-handed study of this important and neglected subject."--John W. Dower, author of Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II

Reviews of original edition:

"A superb study of Japan's underworld that is both entertaining and revealing. The authors miss none of the color and curious detail of the yakuza style, but at the same time go far beyond surface observations."--Far Eastern Economic Review

"The book is laden with fascinating information, some of it heretofore unavailable in English."--Washington Post

"Blend the Mafia with the Masons. Let them simmer a while, then fold in the Ku Klux Klan and you'll have the yakuza. . .. Important and timely. . .Yakuza will serve for years as the source document on Japanese organized crime."--San Jose Mercury News

"State-of-the-art investigative reporting. . .must reading for those who consider themselves already highly conversant with yakuza activities. . .disturbing."--Journal of Asian Studies

David E. Kaplan is an investigative journalist based in Washington. He is former director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, and served as chief investigative correspondent for U.S. News & World Report. He is the author of Fires of the Dragon and coauthor of The Cult at the End of the World, on the doomsday sect that released nerve gas in the Tokyo subway. Alec Dubro lives and works in Washington, DC where he writes, edits, and blogs for the labor movement. He is the creator of the satirical website, The Washington Pox (www.dcpox.com) and is past president of The National Writers Union.