Abroad in Japan

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 4,190 ratings

Price: 17.79

Last update: 01-11-2025


About this item

Brought to you by Penguin.

When Englishman Chris Broad landed in a rural village in northern Japan he wondered if he'd made a huge mistake. With no knowledge of the language and zero teaching experience, was he was about to be the most quickly fired English teacher in Japan's history?

Abroad in Japan charts a decade of living in a foreign land and the chaos and culture clash that comes with it. Packed with hilarious and fascinating stories, this book seeks out to unravel one the world's most mysterious and impenetrable cultures.

Spanning 10 years and 47 prefectures, Chris takes us from the chilling summit of Mount Fuji to the chaotic neon-lit streets of Tokyo. With blockbuster moments such as a terrifying North Korean missile incident, a Japanese national TV experience gone horribly wrong and a week spent with Japan's biggest movie star, Ken Watanabe, Abroad in Japan is an extraordinary and informative journey through the Land of the Rising Sun.


Top reviews from the United States

Kristen Godley
5.0 out of 5 stars Anecdotal Adventures
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2024
Chris Broad first crossed my path as I browsed around YouTube, and after watching his rather good videos about his life and adventures in Japan, I was a fan. Once he announced this book's release I was excited to see if his video storytelling would translate well into a novel. It did! His biting British wit, collides with his openness to experience genuine emotions in his journey through life in Japan. If you're a fan of Japan itself or Chris himself, go ahead and read this book. It was truly a pleasure to read!
Corvidae
5.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining look into Japan through the eyes of a sarcastic British man
Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2024
Chris's 10+ year journey of living in Japan, though highs and lows, is conveyed wonderfully, from coming to Japan as an assistant English teacher with the Jet Program to interviewing Ken Watanabe and all the trials and triumphs between. As you read along through a decade of his life, the initial struggles of being alone in a foreign country, learning the language, meeting lifelong friends, and becoming arguably the largest Japan travel film maker along the way, the lasting message is, don't let fear and anxiety keep you from trying something new; you might end up with millions of YouTube followers.... Or at least some unforgettable memories.

Now when's the sequal novel? Natsuki in Japan!
*AT
4.0 out of 5 stars Journey Through the Lens: A Review of Abroad in Japan by Chris Broad
Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2023
In "Abroad in Japan," Chris Broad unveils a narrative that embarks from his initial days as a language teacher in Japan to the serendipitous inception of his YouTube channel. The book is strewn with a gamut of anecdotal stories likely to resonate with, and perhaps charm, the habitual viewers of his digital content. Broad’s storytelling oscillates between immersing the reader in the quintessential Japanese milieu and dragging them through it - a dichotomy that might mirror the gamut of emotions one might traverse in foreign lands.

There's a candid moment in the book, a behind-the-scenes glimpse, where Broad shares the inception of a video borne out of an unnerving situation involving a North Korean missile alert. With just an iPhone in hand, he records his spontaneous reaction to the air-raid siren blaring at the crack of dawn, capturing a moment that could have veered into oblivion, yet instead, it found a place in the annals of his YouTube journey. This excerpt encapsulates a raw essence of unpredictability, a trait ubiquitous in Broad's YouTube chronicles.

The book, however, teeters on the precipice of verbosity. There's an argument to be made for a tighter narrative that could have not only accentuated the focal points but also made for a breezier read. Despite its shortcomings, "Abroad in Japan" provides a holistic view of Broad's journey, intertwined with whimsical and sometimes harrowing anecdotes that bring out the essence of his experiences in the Land of the Rising Sun. It's a ride that's sometimes smooth, at times bumpy, but undeniably real.
Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshingly honest journey of discovery
Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2024
I found Chris on his YouTube channel while researching an upcoming trip to Japan. I continued to follow him and his quirky commentary. This book was like a journal of his experiences both good and bad and I loved it.
T.
5.0 out of 5 stars Get the book and audio book!
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2024
It's one thing to read this and being able to hear Chris' voice after watching so many of his videos, but it's a million times better to read this and actually hear him narrate it ????. Get the audio book too if you can!
Jessica N.
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book
Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2024
Vibrant color, hardcover seems durable and a very good read
Mohammed A.
5.0 out of 5 stars [insert “Abroad in Japan” jingle here]
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2024
This is probably the best way of learning about life in Japan without actually being in Japan. Written by its author, Chris Broad, who is NOT joined as always by England’s top Japan enthusiast, Mr. Pete Donaldson himself… I wonder how the devil is he doing?

Really now, if you’re a fan of the channel and/or the podcast, you’ll enjoy this book.
Also, you’re gonna read this in Chris’s voice. That’s like a free audio book in your head!
Lis Sowerbutts
4.0 out of 5 stars Well written perspective on living in Japan
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2024
I'm planning a trip to Japan, and had come across the author Chris Broad on youtube. I saw this book at my local library and grabbed it.

Really nicely written book, and it rings very true. A number of the people he met in his first few years still feature in his videos. Hilarious at times but also doesn't skirt the loneliness of being dropped into a rural town without the language just out of uni. Recommended

Best Sellers in

 
 

Force of Nature: Three Women Tackle the John Muir Trail

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 2859
21.83
 
 

Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3003
15.75
 
 

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Dramatised)

3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 63
17.79
 
 

The Cafe on the Edge of the World: A Story About the Meaning of Life

4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 8825
6.08
 
 

Nowhere for Very Long: The Unexpected Road to an Unconventional Life

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 2078
17.32
 
 

Everest, Inc.: The Renegades and Rogues Who Built an Industry at the Top of the World

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 127
17.05
 
 

The Silk Roads: A New History of the World

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 8996
25.59
 
 

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 16057
17.72