Shogun

            James Clavell: WWII veteran, prisoner of war, and one of the most renowned writers of the 20^th century. Clavell is an author whose name is spoken with respect. He isn’t by any means the most famous, but he is certainly among the most talented… in every respect. For one, his impeccable research is unparalleled. A scholar on Japanese culture was quoted saying that Clavell’s novel on an Englishman in Japan, Shogun, is, "a virtual encyclopedia of Japanese history and culture; somewhere among those half-million words, one can find a brief description of virtually everything one wanted to know about Japan.”

            It would be easy to say, “he’s a bland historian, there’s nothing different about his books,” but that would be quite a misinformed opinion. The novel has in fact sold many millions of copies and has earned praise from all walks of life. A teenager with dislike for history or/and learning would thoroughly enjoy reading Shogun, and incidentally, become an astute scholar of Japanese culture overnight. On the other end of the spectrum, a scholar of Japanese culture would be reveling in glee.

            The book is set in feudal Japan, year 1600, and takes the reader through the rise of the fictional Toranaga shogunate, which parallels the real Tokugawa shogunate.

            There is only one aspect of the novel that could be criticized, its length. The book is 1,000 pages or so and that length scares some readers off, likely tempering the novel’s success. However, the pages fly by when the reader’s senses are transported to Japan and the length increases the volume of information the reader unwittingly absorbs.

            Often, we say to ourselves, “I haven’t read a good book in a while,” or “there are millions of books, there must be one that I’d love.” Rest assured, Shogun is there.