Ежегодник Япония (Dec 2023)
Japan in the 21st Century: An Economic Panorama. Review of the Textbook by I. L. Timonina The Economy of Japan
Abstract
In the summer of 2023, the textbook The Economy of Japan, prepared by a famous Russian Japanese Studies scholar I. L. Timonina, was published. As the author herself notes, her goal was to write not just a textbook containing material on the Japanese economy, but a “navigator textbook,” which gives the reader the tools to study the modern Japanese economy. These tools are represented by references to scientific literature, as well as information and statistical sources, methodological materials that provide a methodology for calculating basic economic indicators, definitions of key terms and concepts, and theoretical approaches to the study of various economic processes. Students are encouraged to work independently by using “homework” – the sections “For those who want to learn more…” and “Assignment” are placed at the end of each chapter. Concise Summaries are also a kind of “navigator” that makes it easier for readers to “move” through the content-rich and sizeable textbook material. As for the content of the textbook, it reflects almost all the most important processes and phenomena of the modern Japanese economy, and, in general, it gives the reader a fairly complete idea of the scale and quality of Japan’s economic potential, the peculiarities of the organization of the country’s economic life, its positions in the world economy, etc. Obviously, writing the textbook The Economy of Japan required a lot of effort from the author. After all, to collect, process, structure, and logically present such a huge amount of material, while focusing on a strictly defined order of presentation is a task that requires not only high professionalism, but also great effort. But this was fully justified. The textbook prepared by I. L. Timonina is written at a level that allows to characterize it not only as a high-quality educational material, but also as a highly professional scientific work. There is no doubt that it will be in demand not only by students and teachers, but also by researchers studying the problems of modern economy.
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