Month: September 2007

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Mason, R.H.P. and J.G. Caiger: History of Japan, A, Revised Edition

I read part of A History of Japan, Revised Edition, by R.H.P. Mason and J.G. Caiger, quite some time ago when I was reading The Tale of Genji along with some friends. (I haven’t finished yet, unfortunately.) I read it in full while I was actually in Japan. Which was belated, yes, but at least I got to it eventually.

This is a compact book that is very good at outlining broad social trends and economic forces. Sometimes this makes it a little dry, but I think that’s the nature of the genre, and I was able to supplement it with cool stories in tourist brochures.

Written and updated by Australians, the book isn’t shy about talking about the effect of Western imperialism on modern Japan. However, it sketches the post-World War II period with only a very light and broad brush, which I found disappointing. I also felt that it could have paid more attention to women in Japanese society. For instance, women’s suffrage is described as a consequence of the Occupation, with no discussion of whether Japanese female suffragettes existed. And I believe the Ainu are mentioned perhaps twice. (We shipped this, along with some other non-fragile, non-urgent items, to ourselves to save luggage space, and haven’t received the box yet.)

With those caveats, however, I found this a useful way to get a quick grounding in Japanese history.

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Shinn, Sharon: (01) Mystic and Rider

I picked up Sharon Shinn’s Mystic and Rider after liking the same-universe short story “When Winter Comes” in the anthology The Queen in Winter. I read it on the plane back from Japan last weekend, the last of my vacation reading.

I was mildly disappointed to find that this is told in third person, rather than the engaging first person of the short story—or, rather, an equally-engaging first person, as the point-of-view character of “When Winter Comes” makes a passing appearance. I also found the first chapter unpromising, as it is told from the point of view of a not-very-interesting lowlife and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, either. (I suspect it of being a prologue that the author renamed because readers generally don’t like prologues.)

The second chapter moves to the actual and more interesting focus of the book, a team of six people who are taking the pulse of the kingdom. Led by the two title characters, Senneth, a powerful mystic (magic user), and Tayse, one of the King’s Riders (elite warriors), they find problems and mysteries, but no definitive solutions. This is partly because this is the first book of at least four, and partly because the book is more concerned with establishing the characters and their relationships, which will be followed throughout the series. This includes a romance between Senneth and Tayse, which ends up feeling like the central plot—until the last obstacle to that romance, which seems to come out of nowhere just to fill out the last hundred pages or so. (I think it makes sense, but needed more establishing for Shinn’s audience.)

Though this sounds rather negative, on the whole the book was pretty decent airplane material. I do like the six central characters, and I’m interested in some of the mysteries, so I’ll keep reading when I’m in the mood for something pretty light. I wouldn’t say that anyone who liked “When Winter Comes” needs to rush out and read the novels, though.

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