Considering how large the community is here I am hoping there are some out there that have delved into the history of Japan through books, and would have recommendations of such books that are in English (can't read Japanese right now!) and are as historically accurate as possible. I enjoy reading about history in my spare time, and though I've gotten many good books on European and American history in my collection, I haven't yet dove into the history of Japan, and I'd really like to.

I believe you gain a decent understanding of a culture through it's history, and I figure before I sit down to learn the language, I'd like to learn it's past. Textbooks are ok. I would prefer a book that went through the general history of Japan vs a book that went through just a period of it's history, or is based on a person in history (though well written books of this sort are ok to recommend, as I wouldn't mind eventually getting to them). It'd also be great if the book wasn't too dry, but I can deal with books that are dry as long as they are concise and fact-filled.

Thank you for your time! Any and all recommendations are much appreciated!

(Hope I posted this in the right place.)