Best book (any kind) for Samurai setting?

[fredramsey]

Can be any kind of book: novel, history text, game book (any system), you name it. Looking for fluff, not crunch.

Best one would be short - I don't want to spend a year researching the period. And it should show various groups operating at the time, their sources of conflict, and thus, provide story ideas. Something that gets the ideas across in a minimum amount of space.

Doesn't have to be 100% historically accurrate.

Anything like this that you know of?

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

I can't recall the author, but Tomoe Gozen and the Golden Naginata is a pretty good story about a woman samurai and her adventures.

I remember reading a pair of books many years ago about a samurai who'd forsaken the katana and used a fan and a wooden bokken as his weapons of choice. I want to say they were called "Sensei", but I honestly can't recall clearly. Not much help, I know.

Also, if you can find a graphic novel version of the collected "Lone Wolf and Cub" comics by Frank Miller, it'd be well worth your time.

Alternately, you could read the creepy gamer thread on rpg.net for all the folks who claim to have had training in the secret arts of the samurai or some other ancient and hidden martial art...

 

[ken-ichi]

Sengoku by Gold Rush Games is a great source. It is highly historical and IMO very accurate. If you visit there web site at http://goldrushgames.com/start/ they have a listing of all sorts of books and films that were used as reference and inspiration. I would suggest at least watching a few of the films they suggest. I really liked Seven Samurai because it depicted a group of samurai working together to save a town against bandits. Very much like an RPG adventure.

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

I LOVE "The Seven Samurai". Thanksgiving 2003, Turner Classic Movies (I think), showed Kurasawa movies back to back all day. What a great way to end a day of over eating... lol

 

[johndaw16]

For a short historical look at the samurai I'd recommend looking at the Hagakure. I'd go with the William Scott Wilson translation, its a solid piece of work with a good into. If you don't know the Hagakure is probably the best know piece of philosophy/instruction on Bushido (or the Way of the Warrior). Skim it reading the anecdotes and instructions and I promise you'll learn a lot. Oh and another note its a mere 167 pages.

John

 

[Fieari]

The novel Shogun is probably good reading for this sort of thing. I haven't seen the movie so I can't reccomend that either way.

 

[Gomez]

The Sano Ichiro mystery books by Laura Joh Rowland are very good. They are set in Seventeenth-century Edo. Shinju is the first book in the series. Top notch stuff.

 

[hexgrid]

The novel "Across the Nightingale Floor" might be of interest to you.

Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...002-0349896-4643211?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

It takes place in an unnamed but obviously feudal Japan-based fantasy setting, and is crammed full of intrigue and revenge plots between (and within) noble families.

The "ninjas" in the book (though they're never named as such) are a separate race with actual magic ninja powers.

It's the first of a trilogy, but I haven't read the other two.

 

[fredramsey]

I take it that is the book referenced in the film "Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai"? If so, I own it.

Great film, BTW, if you haven't seen it.

For a short historical look at the samurai I'd recommend looking at the Hagakure. I'd go with the William Scott Wilson translation, its a solid piece of work with a good into. If you don't know the Hagakure is probably the best know piece of philosophy/instruction on Bushido (or the Way of the Warrior). Skim it reading the anecdotes and instructions and I promise you'll learn a lot. Oh and another note its a mere 167 pages.

John

 

[Particle_Man]

there is the comic book series Usagi Yojimo, collected into graphic novels. Once you get past the "funny animal" look, you get a nice samurai tale.

A game coming out called Legends of the Samurai by RPGObjects should be pretty good. Out on pdf, but in print soon (I hope).