This first novel by Alan Gratz will appeal to some – I’ve already had one student who loved it – but I found it to be convoluted and forced. The book is about 16 year-old Toyo, a besu boro (baseball) loving student at the Ichiko school in Tokyo. Going in, I assumed some historical context (I read it for the Historical Fiction portion of an upcoming book conference). I was not prepared for the extremely graphic and detailed description of a seppuku (ritual suicide) in the opening pages. The book ranged widely from amusing to brutal in a tale that included the Meiji Restoration (revolution), samurai teaching, baseball and boys in an elite private school with undertones similar to “Lord of the Flies”. Throw in “Field of Dreams”, “The Bad News Bears”, “Shogun” and “The Karate Kid” and you have a sense of the themes. Mr. Gratz, in my humble opinion, made the classic error of a new author … he forced plot devices to tell the story he wanted to tell. Most mature authors tell you they create the elements of a story, but then the plot and characters tend to take on a life of their own. Mr. Gratz, on the other hand, compressed events ranging from 1877 to 1915 into one year (1891) so that he could juxtapose traditional Japan with modern Japan and have his lead character be the tipping point. The result was incongruity that I found extremely distracting. Despite the decently strong narrative voice of Toyo, I couldn’t picture much of the story. For instance, when Toyo and his friend take a day in the city, they flirt with girls. Girls of 1891 would have dressed and acted far differently than they would have in 1915, where the “psychological” setting seems to be. In the same chapter, the Ginza is seemingly mentioned for no other reason than to indicate that it was “all lit up with electric lights”. In 1891? Not. Toyo dutifully follows the bushido teachings of his father but thinks and acts in too contemporary a manner to have been a Japanese boy of this period. Gratz gets it right in some instances, wrong in others. The boys will not shake hands with the Americans, a custom that is alien to their culture (where bowing is a proper greeting), but they hug one another after a significant game win (their culture sees physical contact of any kind as highly inappropriate). The book has some surface enjoyment and may appeal more to male readers. The baseball games, dorm activities and sword-play could easily be of interest to those who play the sport, admire the Samurai tradition, etc. Readers more familiar with historical context will be frustrated by the jumbled nature of the setting, but if some people enjoy it, does it matter? Not my cup of tea, but maybe yours.
Monday, October 19, 2009
“Samurai Shortstop” by Alan Gratz
This first novel by Alan Gratz will appeal to some – I’ve already had one student who loved it – but I found it to be convoluted and forced. The book is about 16 year-old Toyo, a besu boro (baseball) loving student at the Ichiko school in Tokyo. Going in, I assumed some historical context (I read it for the Historical Fiction portion of an upcoming book conference). I was not prepared for the extremely graphic and detailed description of a seppuku (ritual suicide) in the opening pages. The book ranged widely from amusing to brutal in a tale that included the Meiji Restoration (revolution), samurai teaching, baseball and boys in an elite private school with undertones similar to “Lord of the Flies”. Throw in “Field of Dreams”, “The Bad News Bears”, “Shogun” and “The Karate Kid” and you have a sense of the themes. Mr. Gratz, in my humble opinion, made the classic error of a new author … he forced plot devices to tell the story he wanted to tell. Most mature authors tell you they create the elements of a story, but then the plot and characters tend to take on a life of their own. Mr. Gratz, on the other hand, compressed events ranging from 1877 to 1915 into one year (1891) so that he could juxtapose traditional Japan with modern Japan and have his lead character be the tipping point. The result was incongruity that I found extremely distracting. Despite the decently strong narrative voice of Toyo, I couldn’t picture much of the story. For instance, when Toyo and his friend take a day in the city, they flirt with girls. Girls of 1891 would have dressed and acted far differently than they would have in 1915, where the “psychological” setting seems to be. In the same chapter, the Ginza is seemingly mentioned for no other reason than to indicate that it was “all lit up with electric lights”. In 1891? Not. Toyo dutifully follows the bushido teachings of his father but thinks and acts in too contemporary a manner to have been a Japanese boy of this period. Gratz gets it right in some instances, wrong in others. The boys will not shake hands with the Americans, a custom that is alien to their culture (where bowing is a proper greeting), but they hug one another after a significant game win (their culture sees physical contact of any kind as highly inappropriate). The book has some surface enjoyment and may appeal more to male readers. The baseball games, dorm activities and sword-play could easily be of interest to those who play the sport, admire the Samurai tradition, etc. Readers more familiar with historical context will be frustrated by the jumbled nature of the setting, but if some people enjoy it, does it matter? Not my cup of tea, but maybe yours.
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2 comments:
I absolutely agree with you, Teresa. Alan Gratz does not make any sense in this novel. As as girl, I did not enjoy this book as much as a boy would have. This plot was just...mashed potatoes. I mean, I like mashed potatoes as a food, but in reading concept, I do not. No, the plot was an egg that was dropped on the floor. KA-BOOM! This book, is not a book I would recommend. In your description, Teresa, the book sounds revolting, as revolting as cow pies.
I like your food metaphors!
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