“David is an engaging character whom readers will easily identify with as he struggles to overcome his own fears and doubts to find his inner strength. Although the book culminates in David saving a damsel in distress, Martin creates a strong female counterpart to David in the character of a female warrior. An imaginative take on the triumph of the underdog.” —Booklist
“When a typical American boy spends a year in Japan on an exchange program, he’s expected to have his mind opened to new experiences. In
Samurai Awakening, young David Matthews achieves that and more–for a price. A new entry in the young adult paranormal category, Benjamin Martin uses Japanese culture and history to build quite a compelling tale.” —McClatchy News Service
“Due to the author’s firsthand experience as an American living in Japan, David’s feelings of isolation as he attempts to adjust to new surroundings ring true, as do the details of school life. Dialogue printed in Japanese characters adds a pleasing note of authenticity, and the novel’s rural setting will appeal to readers who seek to know Japan beyond Tokyo.” —
School Library Journal
The myths of the noble Samurai and the sinister Ninja are filled with romantic fantasy and fallacy.
Samurai and Ninja expert Antony Cummins shatters the myths and exposes the true nature of these very real—and very lethal—medieval Japanese warriors. The Samurai and Ninja were in fact brutal killing machines trained in torture and soaked in machismo. Many were skilled horsemen and sword-fighting specialists, while others were masters of deception and sabotage. Some fought for loyalty, others for personal gain. What these warriors all shared in common was their unflinching personal bravery, skill and brutality.
In
Samurai and Ninja, Cummins separates myth from reality and shows why the Japanese were the greatest warriors of all time:
- He describes the Samurai and the Ninja as they really were in earlier times when battles raged across Japan—not in later times when war became obsolete and Japanese warriors became philosophers, scholars and courtiers.
- He describes the social context of the day and the feudal world into which the warriors were trained to fight and die for their lords.
- He exposes the essentially brutal nature of warfare in medieval Japan.
This book is illuminated by many rare Japanese manuscripts and texts which are translated into English for the very first time.
About the Author
Originally from Arizona, ben Martin currently lives in Japan. He was a semi finalist in the 2011 Amazon breakthrough Novel Contest with the manuscript for Samurai Awakening, which placed in the top 1% in the Young Adult category.
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