Guven Peter Witteveen 
The Renaissance of Takefu [PDF ebook] 
How People and the Local Past Changed the Civic Life of a Regional Japanese Town

This book tells the story of a citizen group through the example and results of their participation in local civic life. The book draws attention to the complicated conditions under which civic participation may succeed. The story is about the individuals and organizations in the regional Japanese town of Takefu, but these events are also placed in the context of the surrounding Japanese Sea region of west Japan and the wider currents of the Japanese nation-state at the time. Also inlcludes maps.