IB History Resources: Library books

In this vivid and engrossing biography, we move with the emperor through his early, traditional education; join in the formal processions that acquainted the young emperor with his country and its people; observe his behavior in court, his marriage, and his relationships with various consorts; and follow his maturation into a "Confucian" sovereign dedicated to simplicity, frugality, and hard work. Later, during Japan's wars with China and Russia, we witness Meiji's struggle to reconcile his personal commitment to peace and his nation's increasingly militarized experience of modernization. Emperor of Japan conveys in sparkling prose the complexity of the man and offers an unrivaled portrait of Japan in a period of unique interest.

This story of a Japanese family starts in the 1870s with the formality and security of Japanese middle-class life. After WW2 the author's mother was living in Japanese-occupied Manchuria, but had to escape by foot to Tokyo in the 1950s.

The port of Nagasaki is within reach, but the Shogun's samurai are closing in fast for the kill. So too is Jack's old school rival, Kazuki. Every road is blocked and every mountain pass guarded as Jack makes his final dash for safety. But with all of Japan hunting him, he's going need a miracle to survive.

Ambushed by the Shogun's samurai, Jack and his friends have only one hope of escape - the Seto Sea. But with ferocious storms, man-eating sharks and ninja pirates at every turn, their chosen route is fraught with danger. A treacherous crew only adds to their problems as they flee south from a ruthless samurai sea lord.

Starting with his shipwreck on the most alien of shores, the novel charts Blackthorne's rise from the status of reviled foreigner up to the heights of trusted advisor and eventually, Samurai. All as Civil War looms over the fragile country.