The African Samurai
Ratings3
Average rating4.3
Set in late 16th-century Africa, India, Portugal, and Japan, The African Samurai is a powerful historical novel based on the true story of Yasuke, Japan’s first foreign-born samurai and the only samurai of African descent—for readers of Esi Edugyan and Lawrence Hill. In 1579, a Portuguese trade ship sails into port at Kuchinotsu, Japan, loaded with European wares and weapons. On board is Father Alessandro Valignano, an Italian priest and Jesuit missionary whose authority in central and east Asia is second only to the pope’s. Beside him is his protector, a large and imposing East African man. Taken from his village as a boy, sold as a slave to Portuguese mercenaries, and forced to fight in wars in India, the young but experienced soldier is haunted by memories of his past. From Kuchinotsu, Father Valignano leads an expedition pushing inland toward the capital city of Kyoto. A riot brings his protector in front of the land’s most powerful warlord, Oda Nobunaga. Nobunaga is preparing a campaign to complete the unification of a nation that’s been torn apart by over one hundred years of civil war. In exchange for permission to build a church, Valignano “gifts” his protector to Nobunaga, and the young East African man is reminded once again that he is less of a human and more of a thing to be traded and sold. After pledging his allegiance to the Japanese warlord, the two men from vastly different worlds develop a trust and respect for one another. The young soldier is granted the role of samurai, a title that has never been given to a foreigner; he is also given a new name: Yasuke. Not all are happy with Yasuke’s ascension. There are whispers that he may soon be given his own fief, his own servants, his own samurai to command. But all of his dreams hinge on his ability to protect his new lord from threats both military and political, and from enemies both without and within. A magnificent reconstruction and moving study of a lost historical figure, The African Samurai is an enthralling narrative about the tensions between the East and the West and the making of modern Japan, from which rises the most unlikely hero.
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This period of Japanese history gets adapted so often for good reason! This book is a fascinating imagining of that period and the life of a historical figure who I've only encountered as a footnote until recently. The characterizations are layered and plausible throughout and the author manages to provide an authentic depth to each one. It's also VERY readable, I crushed this in a day and a half and stayed up all night to finish. That's something I don't typically encounter with historical fiction. If you've never heard of Yasuke before, I think this is a fantastic introduction.
This book was great. I think Yasuke is an awesome character to showcase in a novel and Shreve did an excellent job making his voice very distinct and the story emotional.
The book is told in alternating chapters for a large portion of it, with Yasuke's time in Japan with Nobunaga Oda and when he is first taken as a slave. The flashbacks were less interesting to me, but always provided relevant poignancy to the Japan timeline.
For a book about samurai, I expected more action, but Shreve kept a reserved hand here. The action is good, but it's way more about character introspection and Yasuke learning who he is and how Japan works, as well as his place there.
Really liked the ending! Highly recommend checking this out.
3.5 ⭐️
My love for samurai history began when I watched Tom Cruise's “The Last Samurai”. I promptly googled to see if the movie was based on a true story, which made me scroll across Yasuke, the black samurai. Unfortunately there is very little material to go off of in his life since tribal cultures of any kind use oral histories instead of written, which obviously are going to be skewed or vanished after 500+ years.
This book is pretty entertaining but it has several historical inaccuracies and information which are entirely speculation or imagination, which the author to his credit tells you at the end of the book. The author imagines what Yakuze would have thought or gone through coming from an African tribe, going to war for the Portuguese against the Ottomans, being the guard of Jesuit priest, being a samurai and friend to one the most famous Japanese warlords, to finally having freedom.
SOFT SPOILERS:
Some of my biggest issues with the historical inaccuracies are the fact that he gets kidnapped by Portuguese (white people) and enslaved. That narrative fits perfectly with Hollywood movies and pop culture, it's definitely possible but knowing how slavery works in Africa it's far more likely that he was enslaved by Africans and then sold to the Portuguese but there is no evidence to back any of these claims up.
There are also several instances of historical people dying and the author has depicted them dying at an incorrect time or the person who killed someone was not actually the person who did it.
