Just a Castaway
Shōgun (Asian Saga, volume 1)
By James Clavell
25 May, 2019
Because My Tears Are Delicious To You
James Clavell’s 1975 Shōgun is the first (by internal chronology) volume in his Asian saga.
English pilot John Blackthorne’s foray into Asia (by papal decree the exclusive domain of Portugal) ends in disaster. The Dutch fleet in which Blackthorne serves is scattered by a storm and Blackthorne’s ship Erasmus is driven ashore on the coast of Japan. The sickly sailors are immediately detained by local authorities.
Of course, Blackthorne is a white man in an exotic land. No doubt he will play the mighty whitey card, master every skill that matters to the Japanese in a few weeks, and then remake the nation in his image.
Perhaps not.