With the country slowly opening up to foreign influence, the study of rangaku--imported knowledge from the Netherlands--provided by be a source of inspiration that would result in major revolutions in Japanese medicine. And at the center of it all was the medicine-minded cat, Sugita Genpaku!
Does that mean you're writing about 
how you first encountered that book
Es decir, ¿escribe sobre cómo
encontró aquel libro
Isso quer dizer que vai contar
sobre como encontrou aquele livro