Anjin - The Life and Times of Samurai William Adams, 1564-1620: A Japanese Perspective Paperback – Import, 28 September 2018

A gem of a story.At last an insightful, absorbing and definitive telling of William Adams, Adventurer, Anjin and Honoured Samurai.Previous reviewers have eloquently captured the remarkable story behind this book.So praise and thanks must go to the author who has written a insightful book on a man, of his time and the different “worlds” he was to inhabit. This account brings an enlightened understanding of the cultural differences and battles Adams would have faced and the strong character needed to have survived and succeeded. Hiromi T Rogers prose is fluid, enlightened and beautifully written. Her style flows like an enthralling novel, you are immersed in a Feudal Japan of 1600 and grippingly feel a part of this remarkable tale as she has exquisitely fleshed out real characters and real events and brought them all to lifeBut this is no novel but an intelligent, factual based work.Meticulously researched and full of detailed evidence, the author has been able to draw on her Japanese heritage to source and uncover documents never before seen by any western Scholar which unveils a fresh new light on Adams, his life, his remarkable story, his Karma.Embellished within a beautifully crafted text, we are enriched with this new evidence, and interestingly a new perspective.A Japanese perspective.At last an insightful, absorbing and definitive telling of William Adams, Adventurer, Anjin and Honoured Samurai. May this book be the source that gives due recognition to Adams and the part he played in reshaping Japan.A massive thank you to Hiromi T Rogers for a wonderfully written account, her passion for her subject is clear.Entwining the newly revealed evidence with thoughtfully observed scenarios the author offers an “invitation to ride these two horses”.You will not be disappointed.A gem of a read.

There is so much I'd like to learn about Japan, and this book gives real insight into what the country was like around 1600 - as well as being a rip-roaring yarn about how a shipwrecked sailor ended up becoming the right hand man to the Shogun, and changing the course of Japanese history.The story centres round William Adams, a man born in England and who survived an epic and disastrous two year sea journey to be washed up onto the Japanese coast. A chance meeting with a warlord saved Adams' life - the Portuguese Jesuits who then held sway, and promoted trading allegiance, were not pleased at his arrival - and led to a hugely important relationship.When this warlord, Ieyasu, employed Adams' tactics and cannon in a decisive battle it gave him a victory which led to Ieyasu eventually becoming Shogun.As well as his cannon, Adams brought knowledge of geometry (and hence nautical navigation), and ship building to Japan, transforming its maritime capability. Along with his help over gold extraction, Adams' value to the Shogun was such he was appointed the first and only Western Samurai.Along with his title Adams gained wealth, stature and a second wife - but he was also a prisoner, forbidden from leaving, and missing his English home, spouse and children.The text is written with a marvellous eye for detail, often casting illumination on the period as a whole. Adams ship, for example, was Dutch and had an Erasmus figurehead; this was taken to a temple where it was venerated as a temple guardian, before later being taken to the National Museum of Tokyo..There is a fabulous sense of Edo Japan, its rituals, warriors, and blossom. And all of it is written with cultural sensitivity from a Japanese author - as well as with ground-breaking new facts: Rogers scoured Japan for hitherto unknown details, reading ancient scripts and visiting family shrines.All in all, highly recommended!

I have read about Samuaria William in other wasy, initially introduced by Clavells 'Shogun', and the later, on finding a real man behind it all, by Giles Milton. Both the former have , not surprisingly, a very occidental bent to the narrative. Hiromi Rogers manages to bridge the gap, and make some interesting and illuminating revelations into the Nipponese mind and culture of that time, and also how it is manifested in Japan to this day. Fantastic book!

This book is well-intentioned and it is clear that the author has put considerable effort into giving a flavour of Japan to those not familiar with its history and culture. That is an admirable idea.But, in spite of that obvious effort, I am sorry to say that the book is marred by a number of what must be totally imaginary scenes describing the feelings, thoughts, actions, and expressions of William Adams and of some of the people surrounding him. That is completely ludicrous because It is absolutely impossible to state such things with certainty. To do so would require a live interview with Adams, something that is obviously impossible.To her credit, the author honestly admits in the preface that combining fact and fiction is a 'dangerous route for any author'. It certainly is! What concerns me is that some readers might not know which is which.In a pure novel this might be acceptable if done accurately, but what purports to be a historical tract should stick to the facts and not 'improve' them with what the author imagines happened.I was so disappointed by the imagined parts of this book that I immediately sent it back because they meant that, to me, the rest of it was suspect in its accuracy and I have no wish to be distracted from the facts.If I want imagination, there are plenty of novels about Japan (too many, in fact, just as there have been too many flawed television documentaries about Japan). But I don't want imagination; I want facts and there are enough of these to write a whole book without making things up.Factual descriptions are fine, based on the author's access to historical documents, and so are opinions if clearly stated, but I believe it could be very difficult for anyone not intimately familiar with Japan and its history to sort out the fact from the fiction. One major problem confronting researchers in such a field is the use of old kanji and kana in contemporary documents which require a real expert to understand. Translation is a further hurdle.(This is a better book than James Clavell's 'Shogun' which contained ludicrous errors and which I read many years ago in a misguided attempt to learn about Japan before I knew better, but if you just want a novel based on the life of William Adams that gives a flavour of old Japan I suggest 'The Needle Watcher' by Richard Blaker.)This book would have been better written using only the facts with, possibly, a personal view of what happened and some descriptions of medieval life.I know Japan well and have a unique position in its culture holding senior positions in two 'Intangible Cultural Treasures of Japan'. Since 1974, I have travelled to Japan around 370 times to live, work, study, teach and travel there, and have a Japanese family, together with a unique and practical insight into what Adams may have experienced.So I hope my opinion is of use, namely that, if the fictional parts of this book were removed, it would be excellent.Michael JayGroup Commander, Soma Horse Association 組頭 小高郷 騎馬会　相馬野馬追　　　無形文化財　Master Swordsman, Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu天真正伝香取神道流　　　無形文化財　As an accredited expert of the The Japan Society, Michael Jay regularly demonstrates, and lectures on, the classical martial culture of Japan to organisations such as Eton College, Oxford University, Castle Howard, The Royal Armouries both at the Tower of London and in Leeds, and The Arms and Armour Society, and has been a leading contributor to the UK Japan Festival in 1991 and the Japan 2001 UK Festival of Japanese Culture, and to numerous charity events supporting the survivors of the 2011 Fukushima disaster.He has been a guest speaker on land tours and cruises to some of Japan’s most ancient and historic sites, including Japan cruises on the MS Queen Elizabeth in 2019 and 2020.In 2010 he addressed the Oxford University Alumni Association in the Divinity School in a presentation entitled William Adams and the Samurai. This lecture and demonstration of martial skill of the Katori Shintō Ryū included a rare viewing in the Bodleian Library of the actual log book of William Adams written on his voyages between Japan, China and Siam from 1615 to 1619.

I liked this book because having spent a great deal of time in Japan myself on over twenty business tripps, and having worked for ten years for a Japanese company, I appreciate the detail written by Hiromi T. Rogers which brought back to me the 'Japanese' feeling. In addition I rememered well the visits I made to see the various memorials to William Adams.It goes without saying that the story of this man and his exploits are incredibly exiting.