A bold English adventuer. An invincible Japanese��warlord. A beautiful woman torn between two ways��of life, two ways of love. All brought together in��a mighty saga of a time and place aflame with��conflict, passion, ambition, lust and the struggle for��power.
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating: Summary: 17th century Japan through the eyes of a western sailor Comment: Great book about the westernization of Japan and the conflict between European and Japanese cultures in the 17th century. The character development is amazing especially between the main character, Anjin-san, and the Japanese interpreter, Mariko, with whom he falls in love. There is also a considerable amount of action as the samurai class slides into a war that will determine the next shogunate of Japan. Customer Rating: Summary: The best story ever Comment: That's not an exaggeration, speaking for myself. I picked this up from a friend who was donating books to Goodwill, and I wasn't really too excited about it; I had no major interest in Japan. But she assured me that it was an awesome book (my copy is a 2 volume hardcover set that is old and worn, and I will never give it up), and another friend agreed.
What I loved about this the most is that Clavell's plots are so cunning; they keep you guessing. Almost every page, or at the least every chapter, I'm saying to myself, "No way!" "I didn't see THAT coming!" "Holy crap, what?" Another thing is the characters; they really are 3D, each with his or her own motivations and development through the story. In fact, Clavell often switches perspective from one character to another, giving you a glimpse into what they're actually thinking, not just what they're doing. Sometimes he even does this within a scene where characters are interacting; one says one thing, and then thinks another thing, and then another says something and thinks something else. The *scheming* that's constantly going on between the daimyos and their vassals is truly epic.
The central character, Blackthorne, is complex and interesting in and of himself, but the end of the book left me pondering, "Was he truly the central character?" Arguably not, and it's not until the very end that it becomes apparent. But his character's development is the most interesting, I think, and it gives a fascinating look at some of the cultural differences between East and West. I could write for pages about how much I love this book, but I'll leave it at that. This is my first Clavell novel, and I'm tempted to just start over and re-read the thing immediately, but instead I'm going to buy another of his books and see how it compares. James Clavell is a gem that I wish I'd discovered years ago! Customer Rating: Summary: This is my favorite book of all time. Comment: I bought this book for my boyfriend because I destroyed his copy.
I carried this book around with me EVERYWHERE for 2 months.
It starts out a little slow, but James Clavell provides amazing insights into ancient Japanese culture. If you're interested in Japan, this is a very fun book.
It has a very sad ending though.
I actually went into a 3 day period of mourning when my favorite character died.
It is a very long book (1152 pages) but it will keep you entertained for months.
But overall, I highly recommend this book. Customer Rating: Summary: Great Read Comment: What a book. Amazing story. Although the ending, well, I won't spoil it for anyone. I jumped to read Giles Milton's books as a follow up on the subject. It's an amazing historical trip.. Customer Rating: Summary: Life changing Comment: Quite literally life changing. I was thinking about the implications of this book on my life for weeks after finishing it.
