Some weeks ago I presented for the first time one of my books outside of Spain; it was here in Tokyo in Aoyama Book Center. It was also the first time that a foreigner presented a book in this bookstore, so they were not sure if many people would come to the event because the book was in English (to tell the truth I was also not sure), but eventually more than 50 people showed up and we had a fun time together.
The Spanish news agency EFE came to the presentation and interviewed me; the next day some articles about the event were released on newspapers of the Spanish-speaking world:
Here I extract and translate parts of the article published by Terra.es, here is the original article:
The infinite curiosity of Héctor García, a Spaniard that has conquered Japan
After almost eight years in Japan, Spaniard Héctor García, one of the responsibles…
Photography and story-writing lover, and a recognized expert of the Internet, García (Calpe, 1981) devotes a part of his time to share with the rest of the world his “geek” view of the world, a term that, in his case, defines as an “infinite curiosity” to understand and comprehend all thing related to Japan.
The computer screen is the window that he uses to narrate all the curiosities of the country, through the digital “ecosystem” formed by his awarded blog, one of the 10 most read blogs in Spain with over one million monthly visits, and his profile in social networks.
This computer engineer has complemented his virtual side with his book “A Geek in Japan”, published in Spain in 2008, translated into 5 languages and presented this week in English in Tokyo, his adoption city and main scenario of his work.
García explains that his book, a fruit of many years of learning and posts of his blog, is useful to get to know the most interesting places in Japan, but it centers more on the cultural aspects of the country.
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For Héctor García, the “Japanese mentality” changed with the disaster; he emphasizes the image that has been engraved in his mind: the people in a “silent panic” that, even days after the earthquake, walked crestfallen all over the crowded streets of the city.He confesses that Japan never stops surprising him and that, after having worked in several companies, he has found his place in the Internet industry, more specifically in the technology department of Digital Garage, one of the companies in charge of introducing the social networks Twitter and LinkedIn to Japan.
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I was also glad to be featured on the website of RTVE, Spain’s main national TV channel; and in the main newspaper of my province (Alicante).
Thanks you all very much for your support!!
You can buy the book online on the following places:
English version:
- Free delivery all around the world -> Bookdepository
- Kinokuniya Singapore
- Amazon.com
- Distant lands
- Tuttle Publishing
- Powells
- Borders
- IndieBound
Other versions:
4 replies on “"A Geek in Japan" Presentation in Tokyo”
Nice work! Kudos:)
Creo que deberías sacar la bandera Inglesa en el header y cambiarla por la de España, además del link al sitio en español por supuesto!
Saludos!
LOL! That’s how I found this blog! My Japanese bf got me this book and I loved it so much I’ve lent it out to all my friends who are Japanese curious, LOL! My bf likes it too!
Hi — Congratulations on your book, A Geek in Japan. I wanted to let you know that I just published Japan’s Tipping Point: Crucial Choices in the Post-Fukushima World as a short ebook and hope you will take a look at it. A paperback will be available soon. For info, see http://www.markpendergrast.com. I could email you a review copy. Here’s an overview:
Japan’s Tipping Point is a small book on a huge topic. In the post-Fukushima era, Japan is the “canary in the coal mine” for the rest of the world. Can Japan radically shift its energy policy, become greener, more self-sufficient, and avoid catastrophic impacts on the climate? Mark Pendergrast arrived in Japan exactly two months after the Fukushima meltdown. This book is his eye-opening account of his trip and his alarming conclusions.
Japan is at a crucial tipping point. A developed country that must import all of its fossil fuel, it can no longer rely on nuclear power, following the massive earthquake/tsunami/nuclear disaster of March 11, 2011. Critically acclaimed nonfiction writer Mark Pendergrast went to Japan to investigate Japan’s renewable energy, Eco-Model Cities, food policy, recycling, and energy conservation, expecting to find innovative, cutting edge programs.
He discovered that he had been naive. The Japanese boast of their eco-services for eco-products in eco-cities. Yet they rely primarily on imported fossil fuel and nuclear power, live in energy-wasteful homes, and import 60% of their food. That may be changing in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Maybe. But as Pendergrast documents, Japan lags far behind Europe, the United States, and even (in some respects) China in terms of renewable energy efforts. And Japan is mired in bureaucracy, political in-fighting, indecision, puffery, public apathy, and cultural attitudes that make rapid change difficult.
Yet Japan is also one of the most beautiful countries in the world, with friendly, resilient people who can, when motivated, pull together to accomplish incredible things.
As an island nation, Japan offers a microcosmic look at the problems facing the rest of the globe. And as Japan tips, so may the world.
Mark Pendergrast, the author of books such as For God, Country and Coca-Cola, Uncommon Grounds, and Inside the Outbreaks, entertains as he enlightens. As he wrote in Japan’s Tipping Point: “The rest of this account might seem a strange combination of critical analysis, travelogue, absurdist non-fiction, and call to action. It might be called ‘Mark’s Adventures in Japanland: Or, Apocalyptic Visions in a Noodle Shop.'”