{"product_id":"9780692799482","title":"21 Years of Wisdom: One Man's Extraordinary Odyssey in Japan","description":"Growing up in the crime-ridden streets of Los Angeles' South Central, Darrell Gartrell could easily have become just another statistic in the brutal struggle for gang dominance. But an opportunity to travel abroad and teach English marked him down as something different. Following a backpacking adventure across Europe, Darrell arrived in Osaka. There, he became the first African-American to develop an English language program that centered on urban dialect and culture. His school, called Wisdom21, quickly became a huge success, with multiple branches and hundreds of clients country-wide. \u003cp\u003eBut doing business in Japan was to come at a heavy price and Darrell's phenomenal success meant that he attracted the attention, not only of the upper echelons of polite Japanese society, but of the feared 'yakuza' (Japanese mafia) as well.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe tells his story here, in 21 Years of Wisdom - One Man's Extraordinary Odyssey in Japan, wherehe shares with you the mystic rituals, Japanese romances, and ancient practiceswhich date back centuries, yet are rarely experienced by 'Gaijin,' or foreigners.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is a poignant memoir and a beautifully written African-American biography of a fight for survival in a strange land; one which paves the way for those in search of their own path to wisdom in the 21st century. Scroll up and order now!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Darrell B Gartrell","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47019875565808,"sku":"9780692799482","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780692799482_p0.jpg?v=1763617727","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780692799482","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}