I have several books in this series for basic research which I've found quite useful. This one-not so much. Deal does a good job on the history and politics, but the "everyday life" where I wanted details was generic. A good example are the two whole paragraphs dedicated to "Flora and Fauna." No specific animals are mentioned of the "110 different kinds of mammals" and bamboo is the the only plant named of the 5-6K thought to exist on the islands. The section on "Art and Architecture" went on an astonishing 27 pages with no illustrations or pictures. Clothing, cosmetics, and hair had only two illustrations. Other sections were more thoroughly covered, but unfortunately the ones I was most interested in were the most useless. ( )