I'm writing some historical fiction involving US soldiers stationed there, and I need to do some research. Ideally, I'd like information on the daily lives of the soldiers, and their interactions with the locals. Thanks!
The major English-language text on the American occupation is John Dower's Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II. As the subtitle suggests, Dower's main focus is upon Japanese responses to the SCAP and the changes wrought by the occupation. Inside GHQ: The Allied Occupation of Japan and Its Legacy by Eiji Takemae focuses more upon the mostly American side of the equation, but with more of a focus upon high politics. Sarah Kovner's Occupying Power: Sex Workers and Servicemen in Postwar Japan examines the more intimate nature of American-Japanese encounters. America's Geisha Ally: Reimagining the Japanese Enemy by Naoko Shibusawa looks at the transition of Japan from an enemy to a more palatable vision of America's deputy in the early Cold War.
Hopefully these books should help, and keep in mind their bibliographies are also valuable guides for more reading material.