Compelling and accessible history.

Clear and engaging tale for the most part. Good narration, jarring cuts and edits aside.

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Interesting book

My knowledge of this time period was very basic so that made it a little difficult to follow to begin with but it was great once it got going. Covered a lot of aspects of the time period in adequate detail.

It was a bit strange to hear this book by read by educated English accent but it did give it authority.

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chasing down the Samurai

My interest here was to find out something of the Samurai - this was my first look.

what I found here was a wonderful listen,very well read and it held lots very interesting content.

Little is known of the Samurai themselves, pre the sixteenth century.
There is an introduction that delves into the murky historical beginings.

Even from the later periods it seems problematic to find the true historical Samurai.

There is a lot of myth and embelishment surrounding the stories and history, especially when focusing on the actual historical charactors.

Happily for the layman, me, this book is not too dry and was a very approachable overall.

Even with what I have said above there is still much to be learned about this intriguing period in history.

I feel my time was well spent in the company of this book ...
i would definitely recommend it, if your at all interested in it.

i will happily revisit it to absorb more from it.

The same author has another book on audible 'A brief history of Japan.' which is on my radar to listen to.

And with that dear reader, may I bid you goodluck and farewell.

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Samurai drink on sake

A Brief History of the Samurai by Jonathan Clements. The book, although informative, fell short in several areas: the way events were chronicled was like a samurai drunk on sake, a clear set of convictions were missing & pronunciations of words seemed wrong. 📚3/5🌟 #BookReview

Follow me on Twitter @zennyreadsalot for more cutting tweets

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Great narration.

I don't speak Japanese, so I had no idea about whether the pronunciation is correct or not, which some listeners have commented on. The narrator did a fantastic job. Bringing drama to the text and emphasis when needed. Very interesting subject.

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A srong starting point for a history of Japan

this book offers a good starting point if you want to know more about the history of Japan and the Samurai.

my one critique is that there must have been recording issues as the main narrators voice drops out to be replaced by another briefly but frequently. both have decent narrtion voices but it is slightly jarring

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3 people found this helpful

Fascinating history of Japan!

This book covers all history from rise is the Samurai to the modern days. It’s very interesting especially from someone who is not Japanese to learn history and also understand references on Samurai culture and values in Japanese culture and also it gives a good view how and why Japan developed very differently than the rest of the world.

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A Comprehensive History

A good history of the Samurai, the story rattles along at a good pace, I like the narrator for this book. Recommended.

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Excellent

Beautifully told. Brings so many figures to life and fleshes out some very exciting periods in Japanese history. Couldn’t stop listening!

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Absorbing

The Samurai cast a long shadow over modern day Japan. The author takes us from humble origins to dictatorship and their ultimate downfall as a political class, yet their influence lives on.

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