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rodo_guzman's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
thedeadwoods's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
jedbird's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This was a nice surprise.
We were watching the 2024 TV series and really enjoying it, which led me to reconsider what I had always assumed to be a cheesy and probably racist novel. I was 9 years old when the book came out and I recall my mother reading with avidity, SHOGUN in one hand and a menthol cigarette in the other. Precociously, I read a lot of the same books as my mother, but she managed to make SHOGUN sound boring so I gave it a pass. In retrospect, she was probably wanting to avoid conversations about endowments and pillowing
That the book is not 1000% historically accurate is a given--this is a blockbuster book of the 1970s, not a scholarly tome. But the hygienic and cultural differences between 1600 England and 1600 Japan are probably not overstated.
John Blackthorne, an Englishman who essentially runs aground in Japan, is a white guy who, through luck and skill, ends up being important to various Japanese people and figures in their schemes, but I don't think he reaches the egregious level of a White Savior. We do hear quite a bit about his large penis, but there's no suggestion it changes anyone's life.
I enjoyed the personalities and the machinations and the history impression, if not actually a lesson. Really a pleasant surprise!
We were watching the 2024 TV series and really enjoying it, which led me to reconsider what I had always assumed to be a cheesy and probably racist novel. I was 9 years old when the book came out and I recall my mother reading with avidity, SHOGUN in one hand and a menthol cigarette in the other. Precociously, I read a lot of the same books as my mother, but she managed to make SHOGUN sound boring so I gave it a pass. In retrospect, she was probably wanting to avoid conversations about endowments and pillowing
That the book is not 1000% historically accurate is a given--this is a blockbuster book of the 1970s, not a scholarly tome. But the hygienic and cultural differences between 1600 England and 1600 Japan are probably not overstated.
John Blackthorne, an Englishman who essentially runs aground in Japan, is a white guy who, through luck and skill, ends up being important to various Japanese people and figures in their schemes, but I don't think he reaches the egregious level of a White Savior. We do hear quite a bit about his large penis, but there's no suggestion it changes anyone's life.
I enjoyed the personalities and the machinations and the history impression, if not actually a lesson. Really a pleasant surprise!
bhavyn's review against another edition
4.0
ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇɴ'ᴛ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴀʙʟᴇ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴀʟᴍᴏsᴛ 3 ᴍᴏɴᴛʜs!!! sᴏ ʜᴀᴘᴘʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪ ᴀᴍ sᴛᴀʀᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʜɪs sᴇʀɪᴇs ᴛʜɪs ʏᴇᴀʀ, ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴡᴀᴛᴄʜɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ sʜᴏᴡ ᴀs ᴡᴇʟʟ, sᴏ ɪᴛ ᴅᴇғɪɴɪᴛᴇʟʏ ʜᴀs ʜᴇʟᴘᴇᴅ ᴍᴇ ғᴏʟʟᴏᴡ ᴀʟᴏɴɢ
omarft91's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.75
agnewjacob120's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
princessofbooks's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
efuchsen's review against another edition
It was pretty slow, but I also ended up watching the show for the full story
sarahc_98's review
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75