From the deadly streets of Los Angeles to celebrity success in the Far East, "21 Years of Wisdom: One Man's Extraordinary Odyssey in Japan" chronicles Darrell Gartrell's enthralling true-life adventure in the Far East. Narrowly escaping a police assault near the federal building where he worked, he left the country seeking better opportunities--backpacking across a dozen European countries in two years, emboldened by the diversity of the international landscape. In 1991, he arrived in Japan as the first African American most Japanese had ever seen. For many young people, he was...