Basil hall Chamberlain was a scholar employed by the Japanese government. After arriving in Japan in 1873, he first taught at the Imperial Naval School in Tokyo, and then was professor at Tokyo University. Chamberlain was a giant among Westerners in the Japan of his period, and helped many others, such as Lafcadio Hearn. His achievements include the first publication of a translation of the Kojiki, studies of the Ainu and Ryukyuan languages, and as co-writer with W. B. Mason the 1891 edition of “A Handbook for Travellers in Japan.”
But Chamberlain is perhaps best remembered for his informal and popular one-volume encyclopedia “Japanese Things,” which first appeared in 1890 and which he revised several times thereafter. I have the 20th Tuttle reprint from 1994, and that was not the last one. But wait… what value has an encyclopedia from 1890 in 2023? I have been browsing through my old copy and to my regret the answer must be: none, it is totally obsolete.
The only thing you can get out of it is how the late 19th c. Westerners looked at Japan. Not surprisingly, their views are mostly very Europe-centered. Japanese literature "lacks genius," according to Chamberlain (he obviously had not read “Genji Monogatari”), and as the Japanese were only strong in small things, "they were weak in architecture." Well, what about Horyuji?
This a book where you may go for some quaint, superseded ideas, how Europeans in 1890 thought about certain aspects of Japan, but not for real information. When you need to know more about the form of the Japanese government, about literature and history, about Buddhism or festivals, of course only a modern encyclopedia will be of use. Even Wikipedia, despite its many flaws and the frequent blunders in articles about Japanese subjects, is a better resource. A reprint of this book is not necessary!