Download or read book Strange Light Afar written by Rui Umezawa and published by Groundwood Books Ltd. This book was released on 2015-08-31 with total page 117 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A bitterly jealous brother, a samurai who makes the ultimate sacrifice, a cold-hearted husband, a monk who mistakes desire for piety, a fraudulent merchant who meets his match in a supernatural river otter — the motives underlying these traditional Japanese folktale characters are explored with haunting results. Prompted by the sometimes illogical and perplexing actions of folktale characters (Why doesn’t the wolf kill Little Red Riding Hood right away?), master storyteller Rui Umezawa revisits eight popular Japanese folktales, delving beneath their sometimes baffling plot lines to highlight the psychological motivations behind the characters’ actions. In “Betrayal,” a treacherous husband poisons his wife so he can marry another woman. In “Paradise,” a young man saves the life of a sea turtle, who takes him to a luxurious underwater palace, where his every whim is fulfilled. A brother in “Rage” is consumed by jealousy when his brother’s dog digs up a cache of gold. In “Honor,” a samurai kills himself to keep a promise made to his blood brother. Tales of addiction, bravery, sex, greed, abuse and control — these stories take their inspiration from the great Japanese storytelling traditions, as well as from Noh and Kabuki. Sometimes laced with ironic humor, sometimes truly horrifying, these stories of the strange and supernatural will appeal to readers of all ages, but they particularly speak to teenagers. Evocative and haunting illustrations by the stunningly talented Mikiko Fujita add to the eerie beauty of this collection. A detailed afterword outlines the author’s storytelling approach and provides source material for each tale.
Download or read book Samurai Girl Real Bout High School Volume 1 written by Reiji Saiga and published by TokyoPop. This book was released on 2002-04-23 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Royoko Mitsurugi, the Samurai Girl, is the top fighter and best student at Daimon High where martial arts is standard curriculum. When Shizuma Kusanagi transfers to the school, Royoko's top place is challenged.
Download or read book The Japan Magazine written by and published by . This book was released on 1922 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Of Love and Union A Saga of Christ in Japan Book I The Twenty Six Martyrs and Arima Harunobu written by Luke O'Hara and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2018-10-17 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Saint Francis Xavier landed in Kagoshima on August 15, 1549, he found a people thirsty for love and truth yet bound by stout cords of martial severity. This novel is the first in a series that will depict the rise of Christianity in early modern Japan and its suppression by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and the Tokugawa Shoguns. In this first volume, we meet Saint Paul Miki and Saint Luís Ibaraki (among the 26 Martyrs of Japan), the Christian daimyos Arima Harunobu and Konishi Yukinaga, and the great warlord Shimazu Yoshihisa, as well as the immortal Saint Francis Xavier and his dauntless disciple, Lorenzo. There is history and heroism in these pages.
Download or read book The Samurai written by Julia Kristeva and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 1992 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Passionate and promiscuous intellectual warriors - the "samurai" for whom "writing is the only lasting act of pleasure and war combined." Readers will instantly recognize finely sketched and often searing portraits of some of this century's most influential minds: Lacan, Derrida, Barthes, Althusser, and many others. With an authorial voice that modulates between the erotic and the meditative, the ironic and the rancorous, The Samurai moves from Paris to Mao's China.
Download or read book A Japanese English and English Japanese Dictionary written by James Curtis Hepburn and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 1054 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Japan Magazine written by and published by . This book was released on 1922 with total page 534 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book African Samurai written by Thomas Lockley and published by Harlequin. This book was released on 2019-04-30 with total page 518 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This biography of the first foreign-born samurai and his journey from Africa to Japan is “a readable, compassionate account of an extraordinary life” (The Washington Post). When Yasuke arrived in Japan in the late 1500s, he had already traveled much of the known world. Kidnapped as a child, he had ended up a servant and bodyguard to the head of the Jesuits in Asia, with whom he traversed India and China learning multiple languages as he went. His arrival in Kyoto, however, literally caused a riot. Most Japanese people had never seen an African man before, and many of them saw him as the embodiment of the black-skinned Buddha. Among those who were drawn to his presence was Lord Nobunaga, head of the most powerful clan in Japan, who made Yasuke a samurai in his court. Soon, he was learning the traditions of Japan’s martial arts and ascending the upper echelons of Japanese society. In the four hundred years since, Yasuke has been known in Japan largely as a legendary, perhaps mythical figure. Now African Samurai presents the never-before-told biography of this unique figure of the sixteenth century, one whose travels between countries and cultures offers a new perspective on race in world history and a vivid portrait of life in medieval Japan. “Fast-paced, action-packed writing. . . . A new and important biography and an incredibly moving study of medieval Japan and solid perspective on its unification. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal (starred review) “Eminently readable. . . . a worthwhile and entertaining work.” —Publishers Weekly “A unique story of a unique man, and yet someone with whom we can all identify.” —Jack Weatherford, New York Times–bestselling author of Genghis Khan
Download or read book Hagakure The Book of the Samurai written by Yamamoto Tsunetomo and published by Xist Publishing. This book was released on 2015-06-08 with total page 105 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Collection of Thoughts, Sayings and Meditations on the Way of the Samurai "It is said that what is called "the spirit of an age" is something to which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is due to the world's coming to an end. For this reason, although one would like to change today's world back to the spirit of one hundred years or more ago, it cannot be done. Thus it is important to make the best out of every generation." — Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai A formerly secret text known only to the Samurai, Hagakure is a classic text on Bushido--the Way of the Warrior. More than just a handbook for battle, Hagakure is a text that filled with teachings that still apply in business, political and social situations today. This Xist Classics edition has been professionally formatted for e-readers with a linked table of contents. This eBook also contains a bonus book club leadership guide and discussion questions. We hope you’ll share this book with your friends, neighbors and colleagues and can’t wait to hear what you have to say about it.
Download or read book Samurai Revolution written by Romulus Hillsborough and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2014-03-25 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "With his easily readable and entertaining style, Hillsborough does a great job of elucidating the complex customs that ruled Edo Period life and politics. --The Japan Times"
Download or read book Japanese Americans written by Darrel Montero and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-09-10 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite many social injustices, Japanese Americans are one of the most socioeconomically successful ethnic groups in the United States, having the highest median educational level among both Non-white and white groups, a median income exceeding that of white Americans, and greater likelihood of being employed as professionals than are members of the society as a whole. Given each succeeding generation's increasing rate of assimilation into U.S. society, with its concomitant impact upon ethnic ties and affiliation, the author asks whether or not a distinct Japanese community can be maintained into the fourth generation. This study, which employs a national sample of three generations of Japanese Americans, is the largest of its kind ever undertaken. The volume systematically analyzes the socioeconomic adaptation of the Japanese to U.S. society and develops a sociohistorical model that explains the unfolding of the assimilation process.
Download or read book The 47th Samurai written by Stephen Hunter and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2007-09-11 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The 47th Samurai, Bob Lee Swagger, the gritty hero of Stephen Hunter's bestselling novels Point of Impact and Time to Hunt, returns in this intense and exotic thriller. Bob Lee Swagger and Philip Yano are bound together by a single moment at Iwo Jima, 1945, when their fathers, two brave fighters on opposite sides, met in the bloody and chaotic battle for the island. Only Earl Swagger survived. More than sixty years later, Yano comes to America to honor the legacy of his heroic father by recovering the sword he used in the battle. His search has led him to Crazy Horse, Idaho, where Bob Lee, ex-marine and Vietnam veteran, has settled into a restless retirement and immediately pledges himself to Yano's quest. Bob Lee finds the sword and delivers it to Yano in Tokyo. On inspection, they discover that it is not a standard WWII blade, but a legendary shin-shinto katana, an artifact of the nation. It is priceless but worth killing for. Suddenly Bob is at the center of a series of terrible crimes he barely understands but vows to avenge. And to do so, he throws himself into the world of the samurai, Tokyo's dark, criminal yakuza underworld, and the unwritten rules of Japanese culture. Swagger's allies, hard-as-nails, American-born Susan Okada and the brave, cocaine-dealing tabloid journalist Nick Yamamoto, help him move through this strange, glittering, and ominous world from the shady bosses of the seamy Kabukicho district to officials in the highest echelons of the Japanese government, but in the end, he is on his own and will succeed only if he can learn that to survive samurai, you must become samurai. As the plot races and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that a ruthless conspiracy is in place, and the only thing that can be taken for granted is that money, power, and sex can drive men of all nationalities to gruesome extremes. If Swagger hopes to stop them, he must be willing not only to die but also to kill.
Download or read book Black Samurai written by Marc Olden and published by Open Road Media. This book was released on 2012-07-17 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DIV When terrorists butcher his sensei, a samurai takes vengeance in blood On leave in Tokyo, American GI Robert Sand is shot trying to protect an old man from a quartet of drunk American soldiers. As Sand passes out, the old man springs on his tormenters, beating them senseless with frail, wrinkled fists. He is Master Konuma, keeper of the ancient secrets of the samurai, and Sand is about to become his newest pupil. Over the next seven years, the American learns martial arts, swordplay, and stealth, becoming not just the first black man to ever take the oath of the samurai, but the strongest fighter Konuma has ever trained. One night, two dozen terrorists ambush the dojo, slaughtering Konuma and his students as the first step in a terrifying assault on world peace. Though he cannot save his sensei, Sand escapes with his life and a gnawing hunger for vengeance. All he has is his sword, but his sword is all he needs. /div
Download or read book Samurai Spirit written by Burt Konzak and published by Tundra Books. This book was released on 2009-05-29 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Named an Honor Title by the Storytelling World Awards in the category of “Storytelling Anthologies" The samurai prepared themselves for battle through physical practice, and the study of the arts. These ancient stories that inspired warriors so long ago have special significance for today’s teens who face battles of their own: battles against bullies; battles with self-doubt and lack of confidence; and battles with the injustices they see around them. Burt Konzak has taught martial arts for over 20 years and has used these stories, drawn from sources including the Hagakuri, the Book of Five Rings, and other Japanese classics, to help young people gain emotional and mental strength. Whether or not readers are interested in the martial arts, they will find centuries of wisdom in this fine collection.
Download or read book Light Warrior written by Kyle Gray and published by Hay House, Inc. This book was released on 2017-10-03 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A sought-after angel expert offers advice on how to overcome your fears and embrace the light within As a child, angel expert Kyle Gray knew he was destined to make a difference in the world as a light worker. Now, he provides a manual for those who have heard a similar call but whose sensitivity, fear of the unknown, and feelings of powerlessness prevent them from taking real action. In this book, Kyle encourages you to identify the fears holding you back and gives you the spiritual tools to help you become the light warrior you were born to be. You’ll be introduced to a number of warrior workouts that will help you to: · Drop the shields of fear and accept support · Create a loving connection with your angels and guides · Increase your psychic protection and assertive voice · Overcome the fear of persecution · Step into the magic of ceremony Are you ready to overcome your blocks, create internal shifts, and embrace the light within? Let Light Warrior show you the way.
Download or read book Seven Samurai written by Joan Mellen and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-07-25 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the film 'Seven Samurai' (1954) a whole society is on the verge of irrevocable change. Many people consider this film a major achievemnet in Japanese cinema, an epic that evokes the cultural upheaval brought on by the collapse of Japanese militarism in the 16th century, echoing the sweeping changes occuring in the aftermath of the American occupation. The plot is deceptively simple. A village of farmers is beset by a horde of bandits, and in desperation the village hire itinerant samurai to protect their crops and their village. In the end the samurai see off the bandits. Together the samurai reflect the ideals and values of a noble class near the point of extinction. The film may be a technical masterpiece, and despite its movement and violence it appears to be a lament for a lost nobility. In this book Mellen contextualizes 'Seven Samurai', marking its place in Japanese cinema, and in director, Akira Kurosawa's career. Mellen explores the film's roots in mediaeval history and the film's visual language.
Download or read book The Last Samurai written by Helen DeWitt and published by New Directions Publishing. This book was released on 2016-05-31 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Called “remarkable” (The Wall Street Journal) and “an ambitious, colossal debut novel” (Publishers Weekly), Helen DeWitt’s The Last Samurai is back in print at last Helen DeWitt’s 2000 debut, The Last Samurai, was “destined to become a cult classic” (Miramax). The enterprising publisher sold the rights in twenty countries, so “Why not just, ‘destined to become a classic?’” (Garth Risk Hallberg) And why must cultists tell the uninitiated it has nothing to do with Tom Cruise? Sibylla, an American-at-Oxford turned loose on London, finds herself trapped as a single mother after a misguided one-night stand. High-minded principles of child-rearing work disastrously well. J. S. Mill (taught Greek at three) and Yo Yo Ma (Bach at two) claimed the methods would work with any child; when these succeed with the boy Ludo, he causes havoc at school and is home again in a month. (Is he a prodigy, a genius? Readers looking over Ludo’s shoulder find themselves easily reading Greek and more.) Lacking male role models for a fatherless boy, Sibylla turns to endless replays of Kurosawa’s masterpiece Seven Samurai. But Ludo is obsessed with the one thing he wants and doesn’t know: his father’s name. At eleven, inspired by his own take on the classic film, he sets out on a secret quest for the father he never knew. He’ll be punched, sliced, and threatened with retribution. He may not live to see twelve. Or he may find a real samurai and save a mother who thinks boredom a fate worse than death.
