Hi all. I have a few minutes here before I have to leave for my next gig and the kids are busy doing kid things, so I'm browsing the Kindle bookstore on Amazon, as one does. Amazon has weekly and daily sales on Kindle books, so it's always worth a look. Usually the books on sale are romance books or other books that presumably don't sell all that well, but occasionally a good one comes up.
Today is such a day.
The James Clavell classic Shogun is on sale for only $2.99. That's a pretty good deal.
For those unfamiliar, Shogun is a retelling of the true story of an Englishman who shipwrecked in Japan in the later years of the 16th century, who then managed to not only stay alive but also to be of such use to Tokugawa Ieyasu (the man who would become shogun in 1603) that he was made a samurai, given land, and became a personal advisor to Ieyasu on all things Western. It's a hell of an amazing tale.
Now the book does take some liberties with the tale, and it tacks on a silly love story that has no basis in reality, but otherwise it is a great story and very well written. My only real complaint is that for some strange reason Clavell renames all the historic figures. For example, Tokugawa becomes Toranaga. But this is a minor point.
The book was so popular when it was released in the 70s that it led to a TV miniseries (staring Richard Chamberlain and Toshiro Mifune) and inspired a new wave of Japan obsession in America.
If you have an extra 3 bucks and any interest at all in Japan, I'd totally recommend picking up the book while you can.
| David LaSpina is an American photographer lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time. |