Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus

Interested in a book with a plot as outlandish as the wildest action-adventure movie, yet is astoundingly prompted by a true story? Margi Preus’s Newbery Honor biographical novel, Heart of a Samurai, is based on the life of Manjiro, the first Japanese person to set foot in America and arguably one of the most influential people in Japan’s history.

          Manjiro, a bright young teenager, finds very few answers to his myriads of questions in the simple fisherman’s life to which he was born. When he and his fishing companions are shipwrecked on a barren island, they are rescued by a whaling ship from the United States: a fate that nearly all Japanese people believed was worse than death, as foreigners were viewed as nearly demonic and a fatal influence on those with whom they came into contact. Encouraged by the friendship of the ship’s captain, Manjiro stays with the crew as they hunt whales on their way back to America. He attends school in the States and embarks on adventures that vary from panning for gold in California to aiding a mutiny onboard another whaler. Despite the possibilities that open to him, Manjiro longs to return to his family and dreams of helping his isolated homeland embrace the future.

          In her Historical Note, the author states Manjiro was a crucial contributor to the opening of the Japan to interaction with the West – no small feat, as Japan had been self-isolated for 250 years. Preus spins an excellent story that portrays both the harmful effects of discrimination and fear and the good influences of determination, acceptance, and healthy curiosity. Although the tone of the book is more modern than its topic, this is a worthwhile work about an amazing historical figure.