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Princess Masako: Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne
The tragic true story of Japan's Crown Princess-with a new afterword by the author. It's the fantasy of many young marry a handsome prince, move into a luxurious palace, and live happily ever after. But that's not how it turned out for Masako Owada. Ben Hills's fascinating portrait of Princess Masako and the Chrysanthemum Throne draws on research in Tokyo and rural Japan, at Oxford and Harvard, and from more than sixty interviews with Japanese, American, British, and Australian sources-many of whom have never spoken publicly before-shedding light on the royal family's darkest secrets, secrets that can never be openly discussed in Japan because of the reverence in which the emperor and his family are held. But most of all, this is a story about a love affair that went tragically wrong. The paperback edition will contain a new afterword by the author, discussing the impact this book had in Japan, where it was banned.
280 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2006
61 people are currently reading
663 people want to read
About the author
Ben Hills
11 books4 followersBen Hills is a Walkley Award winning Australian investigative journalist and author.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 137 reviews
September 16, 2009
Interesting, especially if you don't know much about Japan's imperial family. Certainly, Masako has a sad story that is generally kept hush-hush. But I had a lot of problems with it. First, the author presents a lot of his own assumptions as fact, saying things like, "We can surely assume he was thinking xxx..."
I also noted many factual inaccuracies and misrepresentations. The author talks about the Harvard campus as if it is some sort of lawless crazy town (with ALCOHOL!), when really it's pretty much like any campus anywhere. He also quotes someone from "Pennsylvania University," which does not exist. Is it Penn State University or University of Pennsylvania? I'm not suggesting it matters, but I was disturbed to see this kind of sloppy fact-checking. I only noticed this instance because I'm from Pennsylvania and know this first hand. What other inaccuracies did he cite in the book that I don't know enough to pick up on? Made me wonder. An interesting enough story, but take it with a grain of salt.
I also noted many factual inaccuracies and misrepresentations. The author talks about the Harvard campus as if it is some sort of lawless crazy town (with ALCOHOL!), when really it's pretty much like any campus anywhere. He also quotes someone from "Pennsylvania University," which does not exist. Is it Penn State University or University of Pennsylvania? I'm not suggesting it matters, but I was disturbed to see this kind of sloppy fact-checking. I only noticed this instance because I'm from Pennsylvania and know this first hand. What other inaccuracies did he cite in the book that I don't know enough to pick up on? Made me wonder. An interesting enough story, but take it with a grain of salt.
April 9, 2018
I have nothing but sympathy for this woman. I lived in Japan during the years she was refusing him, and I remember both the anxiety over his refusal to marry anyone else and the euphoria when his younger brother married a pretty young woman, though that marriage increased the pressure on the heir to marry. God, who would be a royal? It seems like a really shitty gig to me. No wonder she so emphatically didn't want it. But here she is, trapped and miserable in a life she never wanted. In the decade since this book was published, her situation hasn't changed much, though the emperor's looming abdication means she knows she'll be empress soon--and she can't be looking forward to that.
I really didn't like the tone of this book--sneery and condescending and tabloidy--nor the author's determined framing of Japan as exotic and strange and sclerotically backward looking, a version of the rigid and mysterious East, with all its strange rituals and foreign attitudes to the world, far removed from the modern world the rest of us live in, that I'm astonished to encounter in this century. He certainly makes Japan, and most of the people in it, seem both unlikeable and unknowable, very unlike the place I lived in and have such warm feelings about.
I really didn't like the tone of this book--sneery and condescending and tabloidy--nor the author's determined framing of Japan as exotic and strange and sclerotically backward looking, a version of the rigid and mysterious East, with all its strange rituals and foreign attitudes to the world, far removed from the modern world the rest of us live in, that I'm astonished to encounter in this century. He certainly makes Japan, and most of the people in it, seem both unlikeable and unknowable, very unlike the place I lived in and have such warm feelings about.
July 24, 2021
She is now Empress Masako, of course. Princess Toshi (Aiko) is 20 years old. I hope that they now have some measure of freedom. (This book is from 2006.)
Ben Hills, an Australian journalist, did as much as you can with the limited information. He pores through Masako's family history, childhood moves as part of a Third Culture international family, school records on three continents, work record, and still when she leaves her career, family and friends along with her terrier Chocolat, finally giving in to the incredible pressure of having had Crown Prince Naruhito fall in love with her at an Embassy dinner, and walks through those sacred palace doors to take her place in the Imperial cage and in the Imperial bedroom -- well the curtains come down.
Hills spends a lot of time talking about the structures and hereditary staff of the palace and about the structures and limits of Japanese journalism. (Talk bad about the Imperials and you are a target for Yakuza and right-wing fanatics who are often one and the same.)
Only the final quarter of the book deals with what the world knows: the infertility, the miscarriage, the depression, approaching 40 still childless, the probable IVF conception and birth of Princess Aiko, deeper depression, the movement in Japan to change the Law of Succession so that Aiko could become Emperor - and finally the uterine coup of the little brother and his 40 year old wife Princess Kiko - producing a male heir, at last. Did this free Masako? Or deepen her tragic status? The book ends with Hisahito's birth and position as the nephew heir.
She, Aiko, and Kiko must be in a constant powerplay world inside the Imperial gates - inside the changing world of Japan and the Shinto religion and its political apparatus. Unless one of them breaks and writes a Princess Diana/Andrew Morton style tell-all, the world will never know.
I hope EMPRESS Masako has a garden and a library and time with her daughter and can tell everyone to **** off.
Ben Hills, an Australian journalist, did as much as you can with the limited information. He pores through Masako's family history, childhood moves as part of a Third Culture international family, school records on three continents, work record, and still when she leaves her career, family and friends along with her terrier Chocolat, finally giving in to the incredible pressure of having had Crown Prince Naruhito fall in love with her at an Embassy dinner, and walks through those sacred palace doors to take her place in the Imperial cage and in the Imperial bedroom -- well the curtains come down.
Hills spends a lot of time talking about the structures and hereditary staff of the palace and about the structures and limits of Japanese journalism. (Talk bad about the Imperials and you are a target for Yakuza and right-wing fanatics who are often one and the same.)
Only the final quarter of the book deals with what the world knows: the infertility, the miscarriage, the depression, approaching 40 still childless, the probable IVF conception and birth of Princess Aiko, deeper depression, the movement in Japan to change the Law of Succession so that Aiko could become Emperor - and finally the uterine coup of the little brother and his 40 year old wife Princess Kiko - producing a male heir, at last. Did this free Masako? Or deepen her tragic status? The book ends with Hisahito's birth and position as the nephew heir.
She, Aiko, and Kiko must be in a constant powerplay world inside the Imperial gates - inside the changing world of Japan and the Shinto religion and its political apparatus. Unless one of them breaks and writes a Princess Diana/Andrew Morton style tell-all, the world will never know.
I hope EMPRESS Masako has a garden and a library and time with her daughter and can tell everyone to **** off.
January 17, 2016
To begin, I must admit that I have spent a great deal of my time soaking up Japanese culture which has little to do with my heritage. I have read countless articles about the subject of Crown Princess Masako and the of the struggle to find the next in line for the throne. That being said, I was looking forward to reading this book. My hope was to gain more insight on the life of Princess Masako and life in the palace. If that is what you're looking for, but have studied enough Japanese history and keep up with current politics of the country, you might be disappointed. I was.
The book isn't just about Princess Masako and her life inside the palace and up to that point. The reader learns that Princess Masako has been around the world, moving from place to place as her father's job changes. She has learned multiple languages, been educated in multiple countries, and spent a good deal of time outside her home country. We learn she was career-minded and wanted nothing to do with marriage, especially to the Crown Prince.
The author speaks a lot about the Crown Prince as well. We learn a bit about his time away from home to attend college. The Crown Prince seems good natured in the descriptions given and seems to have fallen in love with Princess Masako at first sight. It is here that we find the beginning of the story, which is told in somewhat flowery language I'm more used to in fiction than in non-fiction.
The author continuously points out the fact that the kunaicho (Imperial Household Agency) is the cause of much of the problems in Princess Masako's life. In fact, at times, it almost feels as though the book is just as much about them as the Princess herself. The author also never received any real information from the agency as it is closed off to much of the press except for what they want the world to know about the palace life.
In fact, the author references people who seem to have said nothing much at all and gives us glimpses of hearsay that he sometimes dismisses as such. A picture is painted of two different Maasako's from These glimpses into her past. Those interviewed from her school and college days all tend to say the same thing: she was a hard worker and they couldn't believe she gave up her career to marry the Crown Prince. The other Masako is treated as being spoilt and given advances in her career she didn't deserve. Many of the latter inferences, the author notes, come from people who may hold a grudge against Masako and have no real founding. As far as other references, I noted that two of the online sources are not something I would've ever, as a student, been permitted to use on a paper and that my college professor would cringe at seeing in the reference list here. (The more notable of the two: Wikipedia - site that can be edited by anyone and is often found to have no factual base or actual references in some of their entries.) I'm not even sure where these references were used since the author made no mention of these sites in his work.
Setting that aside, if you don't know much about the imperial family of Japan and are looking for some insight, this book could be for you. It was an okay read for me, but I didn't leant much more than I already knew.
The book isn't just about Princess Masako and her life inside the palace and up to that point. The reader learns that Princess Masako has been around the world, moving from place to place as her father's job changes. She has learned multiple languages, been educated in multiple countries, and spent a good deal of time outside her home country. We learn she was career-minded and wanted nothing to do with marriage, especially to the Crown Prince.
The author speaks a lot about the Crown Prince as well. We learn a bit about his time away from home to attend college. The Crown Prince seems good natured in the descriptions given and seems to have fallen in love with Princess Masako at first sight. It is here that we find the beginning of the story, which is told in somewhat flowery language I'm more used to in fiction than in non-fiction.
The author continuously points out the fact that the kunaicho (Imperial Household Agency) is the cause of much of the problems in Princess Masako's life. In fact, at times, it almost feels as though the book is just as much about them as the Princess herself. The author also never received any real information from the agency as it is closed off to much of the press except for what they want the world to know about the palace life.
In fact, the author references people who seem to have said nothing much at all and gives us glimpses of hearsay that he sometimes dismisses as such. A picture is painted of two different Maasako's from These glimpses into her past. Those interviewed from her school and college days all tend to say the same thing: she was a hard worker and they couldn't believe she gave up her career to marry the Crown Prince. The other Masako is treated as being spoilt and given advances in her career she didn't deserve. Many of the latter inferences, the author notes, come from people who may hold a grudge against Masako and have no real founding. As far as other references, I noted that two of the online sources are not something I would've ever, as a student, been permitted to use on a paper and that my college professor would cringe at seeing in the reference list here. (The more notable of the two: Wikipedia - site that can be edited by anyone and is often found to have no factual base or actual references in some of their entries.) I'm not even sure where these references were used since the author made no mention of these sites in his work.
Setting that aside, if you don't know much about the imperial family of Japan and are looking for some insight, this book could be for you. It was an okay read for me, but I didn't leant much more than I already knew.
March 11, 2013
While the title and focus is Princess Masako, the book is really an introduction to and an analysis of the Japanese royal family. Author Ben Hills, describes its position in Japan and how it compares and contrasts with the remaining reigning monarchies in the world. The author has done a lot of homework and has produced a highly readable book.
Perhaps the closest comparison to Masako's situation would be Princess Diana, but as Hills points out, this is not even close. Diana was able to choose her staff, such as her famously loyal butler(author of "A Royal Duty" that shows his full support of Diana). Masako's staff is free, since they inherit their positions, to undermine her, start whispering campaigns, and plant negative stories in the press. This is not likely to change. Diana chose issues and charities that might have horrified her in-laws, but, as a spouse or former spouse, they could not stop her. Diana, as nature would have it, performed the duty, producing not one but two direct-line male heirs. Masako has none of these advantages. Even seeing her parents is an ordeal.
This royal family, stripped of its power and most of its wealth after WWII, is beholden to the political power of the agency that manages them and their household. While the general public might want to see a more popular monarch, the monarchy itself derives its political support from the extreme right wing of Japanese politics, which wants to conserve the traditional ways. The monarchs who live under this yoke receive the respectful bows of the staff, but in reality it is the monarchs who must grovel to the system. Hills never points to this directly, but it is the only conclusion that can be drawn. The power of this agency and the politicians that support it is shown in how this book has been banned in Japan.
If you know about and understand Japan's monarchical system, this will not be the book for you. But for the vast majority of English language readers who are interested in Japan there will be lot that is new. I highly recommend this book.
Perhaps the closest comparison to Masako's situation would be Princess Diana, but as Hills points out, this is not even close. Diana was able to choose her staff, such as her famously loyal butler(author of "A Royal Duty" that shows his full support of Diana). Masako's staff is free, since they inherit their positions, to undermine her, start whispering campaigns, and plant negative stories in the press. This is not likely to change. Diana chose issues and charities that might have horrified her in-laws, but, as a spouse or former spouse, they could not stop her. Diana, as nature would have it, performed the duty, producing not one but two direct-line male heirs. Masako has none of these advantages. Even seeing her parents is an ordeal.
This royal family, stripped of its power and most of its wealth after WWII, is beholden to the political power of the agency that manages them and their household. While the general public might want to see a more popular monarch, the monarchy itself derives its political support from the extreme right wing of Japanese politics, which wants to conserve the traditional ways. The monarchs who live under this yoke receive the respectful bows of the staff, but in reality it is the monarchs who must grovel to the system. Hills never points to this directly, but it is the only conclusion that can be drawn. The power of this agency and the politicians that support it is shown in how this book has been banned in Japan.
If you know about and understand Japan's monarchical system, this will not be the book for you. But for the vast majority of English language readers who are interested in Japan there will be lot that is new. I highly recommend this book.
March 31, 2019
從旁推敲出的雅子妃故事，覺得缺少了點些什麼
July 28, 2021
and so begins my ABANDONED shelf. hated this book bc obviously this white man has to insert so many of his own personal comments and assumptions about this asian princess's life story, it completely drowned out the princess's presence in her OWN biography. NO TO COLONIALISM!!!! anyway, hated it bc of the colonialism and the fact that it was a man talking over a woman as well. everything i hate abt society is embedded in Ben Hills's narrative voice. absolutely terrible. only Ben Hills can make a japanese princess's biography abt HIM.
June 4, 2015
Fascinating subject matter but rather boring in its execution. Part of the problem is that the author doesn't get a good handle of Masako's character. I never get the sense of her as a real person in Hill's writing. She is simply portrayed as a highly educated but aloof individual who may or may not have been in love when she married her prince. I say this because the author repeatedly points out how much he was in love with her and made her all of these promises (e.g. shielding her from the media) that he couldn't keep. I probably missed it but I never got the sense of what attracted her to him.
I also think what would have helped this book might have been a chapter on the history of the Japanese royal family and how their media and culture portrays them. I thought the most interesting bits were when the author discussed Emperor Akihito's parents, especially his mother, Nagako, who vehemently opposed her son's marriage to a commoner, and the requirements in a potential empress (e.g. she had to be virgin, of pure Japanese blood, etc.).
The part about the possible constitutional amendment to allow Princes Aiko to ascend the throne would have been really interesting except by this point, I got too tired and just skimmed it. This is a shame because the subject matter is more interesting than whether or not Kate (or her sister Pippa) are fashion icons.
I also think what would have helped this book might have been a chapter on the history of the Japanese royal family and how their media and culture portrays them. I thought the most interesting bits were when the author discussed Emperor Akihito's parents, especially his mother, Nagako, who vehemently opposed her son's marriage to a commoner, and the requirements in a potential empress (e.g. she had to be virgin, of pure Japanese blood, etc.).
The part about the possible constitutional amendment to allow Princes Aiko to ascend the throne would have been really interesting except by this point, I got too tired and just skimmed it. This is a shame because the subject matter is more interesting than whether or not Kate (or her sister Pippa) are fashion icons.
April 3, 2019
While the author wrote: "Masako was stripped of all of her freedom and now lives like a bird trapped (yes trapped!) in a gilded cage." He is only presenting his side of the story ( and they may not even be based on facts, just his assumptions!) I would like the author to answer a few questions, these questions have been raised by many times by local Japanese people. Princess Masako is a commoner, so is her sister in law and the wives of the cousins. Why the other women did not lock themselves up and feel trapped as she does? why they have no adjustment disorder? rather, they carry on all the official duties and attended many events, I copy here 2 example, her sister in law and the wife of her cousin " Her Imperial Highness Princess Akishino, besides the official duties and public activities alongside His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino, assumed the role of Patroness of the Japan Anti-Tuberculosis Association (JATA) in April 1994. As the Patroness, Her Imperial Highness attends various ceremonial events such as the Anti-Tuberculosis National Convention, the Central Training Seminar for branch leaders of the National Federation of Community Women's Organizations for TB Control, the presentation ceremony of citations to donors, and meetings with specialists who participate in the international training courses on TB control. Also, Princess Akishino assumed the role of the President of the Imperial Gift Foundation Boshi-Aiiku-Kai in October 2010. Her Imperial Highness attends its annual national conventions and has visited various regions to encourage the activities of community volunteers of Aiiku-Han groups, which promote community networking in such areas as parenting support, and support for the elderly living alone. Her Imperial Highness also attends the Regional Meetings and ceremonies of the Japanese Red Cross Society in her capacity as Honorary Vice-President of the organization.
Her Imperial Highness continues her studies in between her official activities. Her Imperial Highness has mastered sign language as an important means of communication with persons with speech and hearing impairments, and attends the ceremony of "Praising Mothers Raising Children with Hearing Impairments"every year. In recent years, Her Imperial Highness attended the 50th Conference of the Japanese Deaf Education Association on the subject of “Further Advancing and Sharing Expertise in Enhancing the Quality of Education for Persons with Hearing Impairments”, and visited Working Group Sessions for Junior High School and Senior High School Advanced Course classes on the occasion in 2016.
In March 1995, Her Imperial Highness received a Master's degree in psychology. Her Imperial Highness cares about supporting female researchers who restart research activities after childbirth and childcare care, and attends presentations by researchers supported by "Research Fellowship for Young Scientists - Restarted Post - Doctoral fellowship" of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Her Imperial Highness carries out research in areas related to health care, and was nominated as the Honorary Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science in February 2009. In March 2013, Her Imperial Highness was granted Ph.D. in psychology at the Graduate School of Humanities and Sciences, Ochanomizu University, for her thesis titled "Knowledge, perceptions, beliefs and behaviors related to tuberculosis: A study based on questionnaire surveys with seminar participants of the National Federation of Community Women's Organizations for TB Control and female college students." - The imperial household agency
Example of cousin: Since the passing of His Imperial Highness the late Prince Takamado, Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado has carried on His Imperial Highness' wishes and has continued to make efforts to foster international goodwill.
In addition to her duties as an Honorary Vice-President of the Japanese Red Cross and other positions that she already held, Her Imperial Highness accepted all of the Honorary Patron or Honorary President positions that were held by the late Prince in the hope that she would be able to continue carrying out his wishes. These include the Canada-Japan Society, the Japan Football Association and the Japan Lifeboat Institution.
In March 2004, Her Highness succeeded Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan as Honorary President of BirdLife International, a global alliance of non-governmental conservation organisations working in more than 120 countries. With the establishment of the International Kyudo Federation in May 2006, Her Highness agreed to become its Honorary Chairman. Her Highness is also the Honorary President of the Prince Takamado Memorial Foundation for Japan-Korea Exchange.
In June 2015, Her Imperial Highness was privileged to attend the wedding of His Royal Highness Prince Carl Philip of Sweden, Duke of Värmland, and Miss Sofia Kristina Hellqvist Bernadotte in Stockholm, Sweden. In October 2015, Her Highness travelled to Poland to be present at the Warsaw Film Festival Japan Night. She also attended the 17th International Chopin Piano Competition, which is held every five years, and revisited the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, which was opened by His Imperial Highness Prince Takamado together with President Lech Walesa in 1994.
In July 2017, Her Imperial Highness visited Ireland on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the commencement of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Japan. Her Highness paid a call on President Michael D. Higgins and later launched the exhibition “Preserved in Partnership: Treasures of Japanese Art” at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin.
In June 2018, Her Imperial Highness visited Russia. In her capacity as Honorary Patron of the Japan Football Association, Her Highness offered her support to the Japanese national team by attending FIFA World Cup matches in Saransk and Yekaterinburg, and visiting the Team Base Camp in Kazan. In her capacity as Honorary Chairman of the International Kyudo Federation, Her Highness attended the “Russia-Japan Kyudo Kōryū Embu-Kai and Seminar”in Yekaterinburg.-The Imperial household agency
But when it came to Princess Masako, it only has one sentence: Her Imperial Highness is also a sports and music lover, in particular tennis and skiing. -The Imperial household agency
Questions have been raised by many Japanese people, if Princess Masako is not well enough to attend any official functions, how can she go for skiing and ride a horse for 5 hours? The author said she has no money of her own, yet she goes to expensive restaurants, go shopping in Ginza..?
She did not attend the state funeral of her grandfather in law, emperor Showa, given the reason that "it is summer"? Yet she attended her own grandfather's funeral together with the crown prince. This is not the duty of a princess only, it is her duty as a grand daughter in law.
When the author blames it on the Imperial system, he should explained first why other women in similar position as her do not have the same issues, rather they can carry out all the official duties, and can even go on to get a Ph.D? Blame it on the imperial system or blame it on the character of the person?
Her Imperial Highness continues her studies in between her official activities. Her Imperial Highness has mastered sign language as an important means of communication with persons with speech and hearing impairments, and attends the ceremony of "Praising Mothers Raising Children with Hearing Impairments"every year. In recent years, Her Imperial Highness attended the 50th Conference of the Japanese Deaf Education Association on the subject of “Further Advancing and Sharing Expertise in Enhancing the Quality of Education for Persons with Hearing Impairments”, and visited Working Group Sessions for Junior High School and Senior High School Advanced Course classes on the occasion in 2016.
In March 1995, Her Imperial Highness received a Master's degree in psychology. Her Imperial Highness cares about supporting female researchers who restart research activities after childbirth and childcare care, and attends presentations by researchers supported by "Research Fellowship for Young Scientists - Restarted Post - Doctoral fellowship" of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Her Imperial Highness carries out research in areas related to health care, and was nominated as the Honorary Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science in February 2009. In March 2013, Her Imperial Highness was granted Ph.D. in psychology at the Graduate School of Humanities and Sciences, Ochanomizu University, for her thesis titled "Knowledge, perceptions, beliefs and behaviors related to tuberculosis: A study based on questionnaire surveys with seminar participants of the National Federation of Community Women's Organizations for TB Control and female college students." - The imperial household agency
Example of cousin: Since the passing of His Imperial Highness the late Prince Takamado, Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado has carried on His Imperial Highness' wishes and has continued to make efforts to foster international goodwill.
In addition to her duties as an Honorary Vice-President of the Japanese Red Cross and other positions that she already held, Her Imperial Highness accepted all of the Honorary Patron or Honorary President positions that were held by the late Prince in the hope that she would be able to continue carrying out his wishes. These include the Canada-Japan Society, the Japan Football Association and the Japan Lifeboat Institution.
In March 2004, Her Highness succeeded Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan as Honorary President of BirdLife International, a global alliance of non-governmental conservation organisations working in more than 120 countries. With the establishment of the International Kyudo Federation in May 2006, Her Highness agreed to become its Honorary Chairman. Her Highness is also the Honorary President of the Prince Takamado Memorial Foundation for Japan-Korea Exchange.
In June 2015, Her Imperial Highness was privileged to attend the wedding of His Royal Highness Prince Carl Philip of Sweden, Duke of Värmland, and Miss Sofia Kristina Hellqvist Bernadotte in Stockholm, Sweden. In October 2015, Her Highness travelled to Poland to be present at the Warsaw Film Festival Japan Night. She also attended the 17th International Chopin Piano Competition, which is held every five years, and revisited the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, which was opened by His Imperial Highness Prince Takamado together with President Lech Walesa in 1994.
In July 2017, Her Imperial Highness visited Ireland on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the commencement of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Japan. Her Highness paid a call on President Michael D. Higgins and later launched the exhibition “Preserved in Partnership: Treasures of Japanese Art” at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin.
In June 2018, Her Imperial Highness visited Russia. In her capacity as Honorary Patron of the Japan Football Association, Her Highness offered her support to the Japanese national team by attending FIFA World Cup matches in Saransk and Yekaterinburg, and visiting the Team Base Camp in Kazan. In her capacity as Honorary Chairman of the International Kyudo Federation, Her Highness attended the “Russia-Japan Kyudo Kōryū Embu-Kai and Seminar”in Yekaterinburg.-The Imperial household agency
But when it came to Princess Masako, it only has one sentence: Her Imperial Highness is also a sports and music lover, in particular tennis and skiing. -The Imperial household agency
Questions have been raised by many Japanese people, if Princess Masako is not well enough to attend any official functions, how can she go for skiing and ride a horse for 5 hours? The author said she has no money of her own, yet she goes to expensive restaurants, go shopping in Ginza..?
She did not attend the state funeral of her grandfather in law, emperor Showa, given the reason that "it is summer"? Yet she attended her own grandfather's funeral together with the crown prince. This is not the duty of a princess only, it is her duty as a grand daughter in law.
When the author blames it on the Imperial system, he should explained first why other women in similar position as her do not have the same issues, rather they can carry out all the official duties, and can even go on to get a Ph.D? Blame it on the imperial system or blame it on the character of the person?
April 26, 2019
2,5 Stars
Udah lama bacanya. Jadi udah lupa sebagian besar isinya dan sekarang bukunya udah dalam perjalanan menuju pemilik baru nun jauh di timur. Yang aku ingat, Putri Masako susah punya anak dan ikut program bayi tabung. Dia tertekan hidup di Istana. Yang aku ingat juga, terjemahannya sulit dimengerti. Padahal dulu aku pernah baca buku terjemahan dari penerbit yang sama tapi enak banget bacanya.
Udah lama bacanya. Jadi udah lupa sebagian besar isinya dan sekarang bukunya udah dalam perjalanan menuju pemilik baru nun jauh di timur. Yang aku ingat, Putri Masako susah punya anak dan ikut program bayi tabung. Dia tertekan hidup di Istana. Yang aku ingat juga, terjemahannya sulit dimengerti. Padahal dulu aku pernah baca buku terjemahan dari penerbit yang sama tapi enak banget bacanya.
October 14, 2015
作者的主觀意識太強烈
而且充滿了西方的優越感
對日本文化不了解，也沒有想要了解的意思
甚至對西方歷史也掌握不佳
對皇室禮節都用獵奇的筆法描述
猶如帝國主義時代的東方風土誌一般
對歷代天皇事跡不管歷史因素，一徑以今非古
用西方的當代道德準則，責難百餘年前的天皇
作者讓我覺得他不只討厭宮內廳和皇室，還很討厭日本人
對歐陸王室也沒有太多好感
感覺就是在君主政體底下的共和主義份子
我們固知宮內廳因循守舊又對雅子充滿敵意
也可以體會皇室繁文縟節的古板僵硬
但是作者一定沒有看過萬曆十五年
"在我們形式化的政府中，表面即是實質"
不能明白在東亞社會中儀式的巨大象徵意義
皇室只剩象徵性的權力，更顯得這些儀式的重要性
(或者說對"宮內廳"的重要性?!)
略過這種因素，這些禮節也只剩怪異難解了
既然是描述皇室的書
不免一定要跟歐陸王室比較
但總是拿作風較自由親民的北歐王室來和日本比較
而不用英國王室來比
只有在凸顯日本王室的保守時
才會說"連"英國王室都不曾如此行事
實在居心可議
一切以貶低日本皇室為依歸
以致書中的歐陸皇室形象忽好忽壞
當然全書也非一無是處
作者詳細的列出德仁與雅子婚前的經歷
釐清雅子嫁入皇室的前因後果
但是還是有一樣的毛病
有揚雅子抑德仁的傾向
尤其是兩者的求學過程這種傾向特別明顯
雅子很聰明，又認真所以成績很好
德仁的論文背後有強大的團隊支持
諸如此類
因為作者對日本/漢字圈文化缺乏理解
書中到處都充滿了吐槽點
甚至連西洋史也不怎樣
以下略舉數例
pg46:再來是(結婚)儀式的電腦虛擬影像，因為就連極受信賴的日本貴賓也無法觀禮。
其實儀式嚴肅又十分吸引人，我不懂宮內廳不能允許一家謹慎的電視臺進入採訪。
因為作者你是西方人啊
雖然東方人或許不同意，但多半能懂
pg92:德仁的曾曾祖父明治天皇的行為極為放蕩且有仇外心理，不但是日本現代之父，也是十五個孩子的父親。
十五個孩子分別由五個不同的女人所生，而且每一個都不是他的妻子。果真是個很了不起的王朝，不是嗎?
在我們的印象裡明治要作脫亞入歐的表率
結果作者說他"行為極為放蕩且有仇外心理"Orz
今日我們固然不能茍同一夫多妻，但是也不用以今非古
更何況了不了不起跟他兒子是誰生的有關嗎??
如是則古代中國歷朝皇帝該怎麼說??
這段除了拿來酸日本王室古怪之外我完全看不出有寫到書裡的必要
還有譯者，你是不知道中文有高祖可用嗎...
pg98：皇室的學者們將他命名為德仁，意思是[浩瀚的美德]
德仁二字怎麼想也想不出浩瀚的意思，作者的翻譯到底是從那來的?
該不會是從浩宮來張冠李戴吧
pg103：除了基本的讀、寫、算之外，德仁也接受日本歷史與文化經典著作相關的完整教育
尤其是日本最早的文字作品{日本書紀}和{古事紀}。
這二本書起源於八世紀，內容交雜著令人困惑的歷史、神話和唯心論。他也有念過{萬葉集}－－已有一千二百年歷史的詩集。
對天皇起源神話這樣評論，也就沒啥好說的了XD
信仰不容質疑，不然你要天皇說古事紀都是騙人的嗎?
pg156：歐洲人定期與外國種族通婚，進而確保歷代家族成員的健壯；
日本則不然，皇室成員令人矚目的近親聯姻，或許也解釋了皇室曾出現建康問題的原因，尤其是精神方面的疾病。
這種鬼話也寫得出來
隨便想想都能設計出以下對白
維多利亞女王：聽說歐陸王室都是我的內外兒孫耶
哈布斯堡家族：我家的長下巴好建康耶
妖僧拉斯普京：原來尼古拉二世的兒子白血病不是近親通婚造成的耶
作者的西方史素養若不是太差的話這段根本居心可議
為了貶低日本皇室不惜無視歐陸王室一樣有近親通婚的傳統
pg191：他(指昭和天皇)的諡號為昭和
日本不搞諡號啊...這段不知道英文是怎麼寫的，但看起來就是把年號搞混
pg226：天皇不再是國家領袖，領導責任落到了首相身上，
不過實際上，昭和天皇和現在的明仁天皇卻仍然以天皇之名象徵性布召開國會、接待使節、指派最高法院的大法官、頒予獎勵等，日本的權力來源依舊迷樣
謎你個大頭樣，這時候又不提歐陸了
歐洲君主國的國王上述的事情天天都在做，國家的權力來源謎不謎樣??
看到這段讓我覺得作者是故意忽視或曲解西洋史
目的還是為了貶低日本皇室
談到日本皇室的繼承危機時
上溯過去天皇的繼位又顯得作者對嫡庶之分完全沒有概念
至於試管嬰兒這種事，當然不可能承認
我很懷疑歐陸皇室會大方承認
只能說奈何嫁入帝王家
其實，雅子妃的悲劇是很具啟發性的題材
難以採訪第一手資料
只能風聞言事也是情有可緣
但是看不到對議題的討論
只看到作者的西方優越感一顯無遺
反正宮內廳就是爛，只會死抱著化石一般不明所以的奇怪儀式不放
卻不去想為什麼日本會有宮內廳這種根本該叫霸凌廳的組織存在
我倒是覺得日本天皇一向都是擺好看的吉祥物
造成宮內廳除了這點形式上的東西可以堅持
也就沒別的事可做了
跟歐洲的君主立憲傳統在歷史源流上有根本的不同
更何況這種堅持其實很有日本風格
職人傳承千百年的技藝，也是出於類似的堅持
只是沒有人會去責難職人保守而已
所謂的澳洲知名記者極端的主觀意識毀了整本書
(真的很想叫他讀完萬曆十五年再來看評價擺好看的天皇)
下一本看看出版年代相近的台灣人寫的"美智子與雅子"會不會好點
最後，在做吐槽筆記的時候記了一條
pg115臚列二十世紀廢除君主政體的國家名單，1918年列作者的母國澳洲
本來覺得作者太扯這也敢列，怎麼不敢把加拿大紐西蘭也寫上
但是後來查查自治領的法案都不是1918簽的
1918年條下，所謂的"澳洲"又與德國並列
這不禁讓我想到另一種可能，而且是極大的可能：譯者把奧地利跟澳洲搞混了
只要想想一戰終戰是那一年，就顯得這澳洲極有可能是奧地利了
繁中版由簡體版重新編輯而來，同段在簡體版中寫作澳大利亞
可惜我找不到原文來對
但以常理而言，一個澳洲人實在不太可能搞錯自己國家的政體
如果連這個都能搞錯還當啥大記者呢??
是以應該是翻譯出錯
這種低級錯誤從翻譯到編輯都沒看出來
也許這本書的翻譯品質也該打上問號Orz
而且充滿了西方的優越感
對日本文化不了解，也沒有想要了解的意思
甚至對西方歷史也掌握不佳
對皇室禮節都用獵奇的筆法描述
猶如帝國主義時代的東方風土誌一般
對歷代天皇事跡不管歷史因素，一徑以今非古
用西方的當代道德準則，責難百餘年前的天皇
作者讓我覺得他不只討厭宮內廳和皇室，還很討厭日本人
對歐陸王室也沒有太多好感
感覺就是在君主政體底下的共和主義份子
我們固知宮內廳因循守舊又對雅子充滿敵意
也可以體會皇室繁文縟節的古板僵硬
但是作者一定沒有看過萬曆十五年
"在我們形式化的政府中，表面即是實質"
不能明白在東亞社會中儀式的巨大象徵意義
皇室只剩象徵性的權力，更顯得這些儀式的重要性
(或者說對"宮內廳"的重要性?!)
略過這種因素，這些禮節也只剩怪異難解了
既然是描述皇室的書
不免一定要跟歐陸王室比較
但總是拿作風較自由親民的北歐王室來和日本比較
而不用英國王室來比
只有在凸顯日本王室的保守時
才會說"連"英國王室都不曾如此行事
實在居心可議
一切以貶低日本皇室為依歸
以致書中的歐陸皇室形象忽好忽壞
當然全書也非一無是處
作者詳細的列出德仁與雅子婚前的經歷
釐清雅子嫁入皇室的前因後果
但是還是有一樣的毛病
有揚雅子抑德仁的傾向
尤其是兩者的求學過程這種傾向特別明顯
雅子很聰明，又認真所以成績很好
德仁的論文背後有強大的團隊支持
諸如此類
因為作者對日本/漢字圈文化缺乏理解
書中到處都充滿了吐槽點
甚至連西洋史也不怎樣
以下略舉數例
pg46:再來是(結婚)儀式的電腦虛擬影像，因為就連極受信賴的日本貴賓也無法觀禮。
其實儀式嚴肅又十分吸引人，我不懂宮內廳不能允許一家謹慎的電視臺進入採訪。
因為作者你是西方人啊
雖然東方人或許不同意，但多半能懂
pg92:德仁的曾曾祖父明治天皇的行為極為放蕩且有仇外心理，不但是日本現代之父，也是十五個孩子的父親。
十五個孩子分別由五個不同的女人所生，而且每一個都不是他的妻子。果真是個很了不起的王朝，不是嗎?
在我們的印象裡明治要作脫亞入歐的表率
結果作者說他"行為極為放蕩且有仇外心理"Orz
今日我們固然不能茍同一夫多妻，但是也不用以今非古
更何況了不了不起跟他兒子是誰生的有關嗎??
如是則古代中國歷朝皇帝該怎麼說??
這段除了拿來酸日本王室古怪之外我完全看不出有寫到書裡的必要
還有譯者，你是不知道中文有高祖可用嗎...
pg98：皇室的學者們將他命名為德仁，意思是[浩瀚的美德]
德仁二字怎麼想也想不出浩瀚的意思，作者的翻譯到底是從那來的?
該不會是從浩宮來張冠李戴吧
pg103：除了基本的讀、寫、算之外，德仁也接受日本歷史與文化經典著作相關的完整教育
尤其是日本最早的文字作品{日本書紀}和{古事紀}。
這二本書起源於八世紀，內容交雜著令人困惑的歷史、神話和唯心論。他也有念過{萬葉集}－－已有一千二百年歷史的詩集。
對天皇起源神話這樣評論，也就沒啥好說的了XD
信仰不容質疑，不然你要天皇說古事紀都是騙人的嗎?
pg156：歐洲人定期與外國種族通婚，進而確保歷代家族成員的健壯；
日本則不然，皇室成員令人矚目的近親聯姻，或許也解釋了皇室曾出現建康問題的原因，尤其是精神方面的疾病。
這種鬼話也寫得出來
隨便想想都能設計出以下對白
維多利亞女王：聽說歐陸王室都是我的內外兒孫耶
哈布斯堡家族：我家的長下巴好建康耶
妖僧拉斯普京：原來尼古拉二世的兒子白血病不是近親通婚造成的耶
作者的西方史素養若不是太差的話這段根本居心可議
為了貶低日本皇室不惜無視歐陸王室一樣有近親通婚的傳統
pg191：他(指昭和天皇)的諡號為昭和
日本不搞諡號啊...這段不知道英文是怎麼寫的，但看起來就是把年號搞混
pg226：天皇不再是國家領袖，領導責任落到了首相身上，
不過實際上，昭和天皇和現在的明仁天皇卻仍然以天皇之名象徵性布召開國會、接待使節、指派最高法院的大法官、頒予獎勵等，日本的權力來源依舊迷樣
謎你個大頭樣，這時候又不提歐陸了
歐洲君主國的國王上述的事情天天都在做，國家的權力來源謎不謎樣??
看到這段讓我覺得作者是故意忽視或曲解西洋史
目的還是為了貶低日本皇室
談到日本皇室的繼承危機時
上溯過去天皇的繼位又顯得作者對嫡庶之分完全沒有概念
至於試管嬰兒這種事，當然不可能承認
我很懷疑歐陸皇室會大方承認
只能說奈何嫁入帝王家
其實，雅子妃的悲劇是很具啟發性的題材
難以採訪第一手資料
只能風聞言事也是情有可緣
但是看不到對議題的討論
只看到作者的西方優越感一顯無遺
反正宮內廳就是爛，只會死抱著化石一般不明所以的奇怪儀式不放
卻不去想為什麼日本會有宮內廳這種根本該叫霸凌廳的組織存在
我倒是覺得日本天皇一向都是擺好看的吉祥物
造成宮內廳除了這點形式上的東西可以堅持
也就沒別的事可做了
跟歐洲的君主立憲傳統在歷史源流上有根本的不同
更何況這種堅持其實很有日本風格
職人傳承千百年的技藝，也是出於類似的堅持
只是沒有人會去責難職人保守而已
所謂的澳洲知名記者極端的主觀意識毀了整本書
(真的很想叫他讀完萬曆十五年再來看評價擺好看的天皇)
下一本看看出版年代相近的台灣人寫的"美智子與雅子"會不會好點
最後，在做吐槽筆記的時候記了一條
pg115臚列二十世紀廢除君主政體的國家名單，1918年列作者的母國澳洲
本來覺得作者太扯這也敢列，怎麼不敢把加拿大紐西蘭也寫上
但是後來查查自治領的法案都不是1918簽的
1918年條下，所謂的"澳洲"又與德國並列
這不禁讓我想到另一種可能，而且是極大的可能：譯者把奧地利跟澳洲搞混了
只要想想一戰終戰是那一年，就顯得這澳洲極有可能是奧地利了
繁中版由簡體版重新編輯而來，同段在簡體版中寫作澳大利亞
可惜我找不到原文來對
但以常理而言，一個澳洲人實在不太可能搞錯自己國家的政體
如果連這個都能搞錯還當啥大記者呢??
是以應該是翻譯出錯
這種低級錯誤從翻譯到編輯都沒看出來
也許這本書的翻譯品質也該打上問號Orz
May 31, 2019
This is one of the strangest books. Kudos to the author for all the research, travel and interviews which must have taken a lot of time and effort to obtain and which were very thorough. He also can be, quite obviously, an excellent writer. But the first 100 pages of this book was absolutely torture. I found myself ending each reading session in a bad mood. The problem, for me, was that the book bordered on sensationalism and the author put too much of his own bias into his prose. He was critical of everything about Masako (her family, upbringing, schooling, etc) without being in a position to fairly judge. And why judge anyway? The reader just wants to know the issues so they can decide for themselves. In addition, the Japanese monarchy was often, unfairly, compared to the British monarchy as if the British system was better when in fact, they're two different monarchies and cultures, neither of which is better than the other. There were two chapters (The Last Emperor, p. 84 and By Royal Appointment, p. 156) in a completely different font than the rest of the book! With no explanation. To single out chapters like that for a separate font, you'd think it would be noted somewhere why they were presented that way and where they came from. But this book does have a happy ending; not for Masako, but for the reader. After around page 100, the book which up until now sounds like it was written by a jilted lover, ramps up and delivers exactly what you were hoping for! The bias is suddenly gone from the writing, the author reports objectively, and the reader begins to be allowed to make their own conclusions. If I were the publisher, I'd find a new editor, put out an updated edition (The Crown Princess is now Empress), give it a new title and cover, and reissue it. It's such a shame that this book has not yet reached its potential. Mottai nai! Until then, if this edition is the only one available to you, rip out the first 100 pages and start reading from there.
December 22, 2008
I rate this book 2 stars for content, 3 stars for interest. The book is about Crown Princess Masako, married to Crown Prince Naruhito. Much of the information in this book was acquired second hand and at times has a somewhat loose tabloid feel to it. This is understandable since it’s virtually impossible to obtain info on the secretive life of the Japanese royalty. The thing that bothers me about this book is the author’s blatant prejudice against the life and culture of the Japanese royalty. I do not recall reading one single positive thing. But maybe there really isn’t anything?
The book held my interest because it opened my eyes to a subject I had absolutely no knowledge about. I was dismayed to see how Masako, who was beautiful, talented, intelligent, accomplished, a champion soft ball player and avid skier, was stripped of all of her freedom and now lives like a bird trapped (yes trapped!) in a gilded cage. She cannot even see her parents when she wants to, and in fact, the first 3 years of her marriage, she was allowed to see them only 5 times. She has no computer, no telephone, is virtually cut off from the outside world, and has to get permission to go anywhere. She even needs to make an appointment to see her in-laws (Naruhito’s parents). Once, when asked about her main interest, she wrote about finding a bug on a leaf and taking care of it for a year. It’s no wonder she is in depression.
Read this book just to see what kind of life not to choose. Real princesses do not have fairy tale lives.
The book held my interest because it opened my eyes to a subject I had absolutely no knowledge about. I was dismayed to see how Masako, who was beautiful, talented, intelligent, accomplished, a champion soft ball player and avid skier, was stripped of all of her freedom and now lives like a bird trapped (yes trapped!) in a gilded cage. She cannot even see her parents when she wants to, and in fact, the first 3 years of her marriage, she was allowed to see them only 5 times. She has no computer, no telephone, is virtually cut off from the outside world, and has to get permission to go anywhere. She even needs to make an appointment to see her in-laws (Naruhito’s parents). Once, when asked about her main interest, she wrote about finding a bug on a leaf and taking care of it for a year. It’s no wonder she is in depression.
Read this book just to see what kind of life not to choose. Real princesses do not have fairy tale lives.
June 19, 2014
** Books 157 - 2014 **
buku ini terlarang untuk beredar di jepang karena isinya mengungkap kehidupan putri mahkota mahkota dan orang sekitarnya.. buku ini menceritakan kisah perjalanan hidup seorang wanita karir yg cerdas, ambisius, lulusan 3 universitas top (harvard, oxford dan todai) yang merupakan anak diplomat dan sempat bekerja di kementerian luar negeri jepang hingga akhirnya setelah perjalanan panjang memutuskan menikah dengan pangeran Naruhito
sangkar dalam emas itulah yg bisa katakan dari kehidupan putri Masako. bayangkan saja dia harus meninggalkan semua kehidupannya ketika menikah dengan pangeran Naruhito. mulai dari diolok2 oleh pers, diatur oleh kepala rumah tangga mulai jadwal, apa yg dimakan dan dikenakan, dituntut memiliki anak laki2, tidak boleh bertemu keluarga, dan hal2 itu sukses membuat putri ini mengidap depresi kronìs berkepanjangan hingga saat ini..
buku ini sebenarnya menarik karena gak cuma menceritakan tentang putri Masako tetapi anggota keluarga Pangeran Naruhito (kaisar hirohito dan empress michiko).. cuma alur yg lambat dan bahasanya yg agak ribet sempat membuat saya bosan membaca buku ini.. saya berikan 3,2 dari 5 bintang!
buku ini terlarang untuk beredar di jepang karena isinya mengungkap kehidupan putri mahkota mahkota dan orang sekitarnya.. buku ini menceritakan kisah perjalanan hidup seorang wanita karir yg cerdas, ambisius, lulusan 3 universitas top (harvard, oxford dan todai) yang merupakan anak diplomat dan sempat bekerja di kementerian luar negeri jepang hingga akhirnya setelah perjalanan panjang memutuskan menikah dengan pangeran Naruhito
sangkar dalam emas itulah yg bisa katakan dari kehidupan putri Masako. bayangkan saja dia harus meninggalkan semua kehidupannya ketika menikah dengan pangeran Naruhito. mulai dari diolok2 oleh pers, diatur oleh kepala rumah tangga mulai jadwal, apa yg dimakan dan dikenakan, dituntut memiliki anak laki2, tidak boleh bertemu keluarga, dan hal2 itu sukses membuat putri ini mengidap depresi kronìs berkepanjangan hingga saat ini..
buku ini sebenarnya menarik karena gak cuma menceritakan tentang putri Masako tetapi anggota keluarga Pangeran Naruhito (kaisar hirohito dan empress michiko).. cuma alur yg lambat dan bahasanya yg agak ribet sempat membuat saya bosan membaca buku ini.. saya berikan 3,2 dari 5 bintang!
January 4, 2010
Buku ini saya baca karena penulisnya, Ben Hills, ialah jurnalis investigasi jempolan di Australia. Dia juga yang dianugerahi Perkim Award 2007. Dan kerja kerasnya untuk penulisan Masako betul-betul bikin saya mikir: Buset dah, siyal banget jadi Masako. Buat saya, enggak masuk akal ketika diplomat brilian lulusan tiga universitas canggih itu: Harvard, Oxford, Tokyo Univ akhirnya masuk istana dan kehilangan eksistensinya. -well, birokrasi dan protokeler Istana menempatkan istri putra mahkota sebagai pelengkap-
Entah Masako berani, atau ceroboh, ketika akhirnya memilih masuk istana dan mengorbankan karir yang gemilang, keluarga, teman bahkan masa depan.
Ben Hills memotret Jepang dengan menarik. Banyak hal baru yang saya dapat dengan membaca buku ini, terutama budaya dan kondisi istana yang membuat saya tercekat tanpa bisa protes. -budayamu budayamu, budayaku budayaku- :D
Entah Masako berani, atau ceroboh, ketika akhirnya memilih masuk istana dan mengorbankan karir yang gemilang, keluarga, teman bahkan masa depan.
Ben Hills memotret Jepang dengan menarik. Banyak hal baru yang saya dapat dengan membaca buku ini, terutama budaya dan kondisi istana yang membuat saya tercekat tanpa bisa protes. -budayamu budayamu, budayaku budayaku- :D
February 4, 2018
This story is an excellent justification for abolishing the whole idiotic notion of royalty. The Japanese imperial system took in an intelligent, well-educated, ambitious woman and then crushed her. Masako has had to endure an even more soul-sucking experience than Princess Diana did. She can't even go to lunch with friends until her elderly gatekeepers vet the invitees and set the date. All she has been permitted (and expected) to do is reproduce. It's no surprise that she has been miserable.
The book was written by an Australian journalist who is sympathetic without being sycophantic. The writing style is casual but sincere. It's a quick read. As you get deeper into the book, you'll find yourself hoping that Masako some day gathers up the courage to leap for freedom. It probably won't happen.
The book was written by an Australian journalist who is sympathetic without being sycophantic. The writing style is casual but sincere. It's a quick read. As you get deeper into the book, you'll find yourself hoping that Masako some day gathers up the courage to leap for freedom. It probably won't happen.
August 3, 2015
This is not a great book by any imagination--and it was full of the author's imagination with little fact to back it up. It's true that no one can get close enough to the Japanese royalty to get any real facts and his guesses seemed reasonable, it still bothered me that the author esteemed his own opinion so highly. A LOT of speculation and conjecture. His writing is erratic and the timelines hard to follow. I did enjoy reading about some of the royalty history and about Masako's youth and life before becoming the princess, but not enough to recommend the book.
April 8, 2022
I disliked the flippant and aggressive tone of this book.
When explaining the police presence at the wedding, the author starts off by saying it's not because of Islamic terrorists. Who said it was? Why would you start that way? Just say there were protests by anti-monarchists. Instead the protesters are described as communists and people of lower castes with no evidence backing up this claim. A lot of the sarcastic remarks come off as bad reporting (Princess Diana is not a commoner even though the media treated her as one) and a lot of the descriptions are offensive (Saudi Arabia's "greatest budgetary headache is too many chiefs and not enough indians"). The author's disdain for ugly people and Japanese tradition is very clear. While the author may have done a lot of research for this book, I'm knocking the stars down to 1 because I found the book offensive.
Stuff I learned:
- Masako is a royal name, so her parents were accused of aiming for their daughter to one day marry a Prince, in the same way the Middletons were accused of prepping Catherine to marry into British royalty.
- Unlike the UK, where there's no seperation of church and state, Japan's funding of their royal family is complicated since they practice Shintoism. Is Japan's government violating the Constitution (which says separation of church and state) by funding the royal family? Especially their Shinto weddings? Hmmm. Interesting legal quandary.
- Royal marriages are just Shinto ceremonies, they are not legally entered into the marriage registry.
- The Crown Prince's younger brother married first, against tradition as old brother should be first, because he was a playboy and gaining a reputation as being creepy. His main girl's family had power and wanted her settled down and the Kunaicho agreed, he needed to settle down too, tradition be damned.
- Only the Emperor walks in middle of the red carpet, normal people should walk to the side in a hallway in the Palace
- Why did Masako agree to the marriage when she knew she'd have to give up her career, her dog, her family, her life, and part of her personality? The author states that she had hit a wall in the foreign service because the Japanese foreign service is sexist. The Crown Prince then promised her she would have a strong diplomatic role as a princess and would be able to make more change than as a civil servant. "He made a promise he could not keep. He was stupid to make it, and she was stupid to believe it." .... Wow. In my opinion, this is the best explanation based on the information we have. It's also the saddest.
- Masako's father is pro-Palestine and so his International Court of Justice briefs comes as anti-Semitic by implying Israel commits false flag events or lies about Palestinian acts.
Well that's awful. Ughhhhhh.
- "she will live to regret the rainy summer's day that she surrendered to well-meant notions of duty and honor and gave up her life for her country"
Frackkkkkk that's sad. Clearly Masako suffers from more than just Adjustment Disorder (the sad explanation given by the Palace) as she's been unseen for most of her life as a princess and plagued by many rumors of a mental breakdown.
The Japanese royals are controlled by their courtiers ("the men in black" or "Kunaicho") and have little freedom or choice. Masako walked into a cage and the door was locked behind her.
Stuff I'm skeptical of:
- I cannot find any evidence to back up this author's claim that a ceremony takes place in which two virgins rub the bride-to-be belly with rice bran to ensure fertility at the Grand Shrine in Ise. This Shrine contains regalia of the mythical creation of Japan and the divinity of the royal family. The inner portions aren't available to visitors and the high priestess is always a woman from the Imperial Family. So really, there's no way to know. We can't prove a negative, there always could be some sort of secret Shinto ritual the press never has proof of. However this rumor feeds into stereotypes about Japan so it makes me uncomfortable. The author cites the magazine Bungei Shunju as the origin of this claim.
- I thinking the author is overstepping. Is there evidence that Masako used hormone treatment? Yes, according to the author. Is that the same as IVF? No. If she engaged in IVF why would they not sex select? The author argues because Japan is behind in medical science so much they couldn't. That's a bold (and possibly racist) claim to make. I think the lesser, hormone drugs helped, is the right claim why she got pregnant 7+ years after marriage.
- then why didn't she engage in a second ñ couldn't assist.
Ya, I don't believe any of that.
- the author makes the claim Masako's father was nominated by the Japanese government to the ICJ so that he and his wife would stop influencing their daughter to take control of her health and leave the palace sometimes for a vacation. (The ICJ is in the Netherlands).
When explaining the police presence at the wedding, the author starts off by saying it's not because of Islamic terrorists. Who said it was? Why would you start that way? Just say there were protests by anti-monarchists. Instead the protesters are described as communists and people of lower castes with no evidence backing up this claim. A lot of the sarcastic remarks come off as bad reporting (Princess Diana is not a commoner even though the media treated her as one) and a lot of the descriptions are offensive (Saudi Arabia's "greatest budgetary headache is too many chiefs and not enough indians"). The author's disdain for ugly people and Japanese tradition is very clear. While the author may have done a lot of research for this book, I'm knocking the stars down to 1 because I found the book offensive.
Stuff I learned:
- Masako is a royal name, so her parents were accused of aiming for their daughter to one day marry a Prince, in the same way the Middletons were accused of prepping Catherine to marry into British royalty.
- Unlike the UK, where there's no seperation of church and state, Japan's funding of their royal family is complicated since they practice Shintoism. Is Japan's government violating the Constitution (which says separation of church and state) by funding the royal family? Especially their Shinto weddings? Hmmm. Interesting legal quandary.
- Royal marriages are just Shinto ceremonies, they are not legally entered into the marriage registry.
- The Crown Prince's younger brother married first, against tradition as old brother should be first, because he was a playboy and gaining a reputation as being creepy. His main girl's family had power and wanted her settled down and the Kunaicho agreed, he needed to settle down too, tradition be damned.
- Only the Emperor walks in middle of the red carpet, normal people should walk to the side in a hallway in the Palace
- Why did Masako agree to the marriage when she knew she'd have to give up her career, her dog, her family, her life, and part of her personality? The author states that she had hit a wall in the foreign service because the Japanese foreign service is sexist. The Crown Prince then promised her she would have a strong diplomatic role as a princess and would be able to make more change than as a civil servant. "He made a promise he could not keep. He was stupid to make it, and she was stupid to believe it." .... Wow. In my opinion, this is the best explanation based on the information we have. It's also the saddest.
- Masako's father is pro-Palestine and so his International Court of Justice briefs comes as anti-Semitic by implying Israel commits false flag events or lies about Palestinian acts.
Well that's awful. Ughhhhhh.
- "she will live to regret the rainy summer's day that she surrendered to well-meant notions of duty and honor and gave up her life for her country"
Frackkkkkk that's sad. Clearly Masako suffers from more than just Adjustment Disorder (the sad explanation given by the Palace) as she's been unseen for most of her life as a princess and plagued by many rumors of a mental breakdown.
The Japanese royals are controlled by their courtiers ("the men in black" or "Kunaicho") and have little freedom or choice. Masako walked into a cage and the door was locked behind her.
Stuff I'm skeptical of:
- I cannot find any evidence to back up this author's claim that a ceremony takes place in which two virgins rub the bride-to-be belly with rice bran to ensure fertility at the Grand Shrine in Ise. This Shrine contains regalia of the mythical creation of Japan and the divinity of the royal family. The inner portions aren't available to visitors and the high priestess is always a woman from the Imperial Family. So really, there's no way to know. We can't prove a negative, there always could be some sort of secret Shinto ritual the press never has proof of. However this rumor feeds into stereotypes about Japan so it makes me uncomfortable. The author cites the magazine Bungei Shunju as the origin of this claim.
- I thinking the author is overstepping. Is there evidence that Masako used hormone treatment? Yes, according to the author. Is that the same as IVF? No. If she engaged in IVF why would they not sex select? The author argues because Japan is behind in medical science so much they couldn't. That's a bold (and possibly racist) claim to make. I think the lesser, hormone drugs helped, is the right claim why she got pregnant 7+ years after marriage.
- then why didn't she engage in a second ñ couldn't assist.
Ya, I don't believe any of that.
- the author makes the claim Masako's father was nominated by the Japanese government to the ICJ so that he and his wife would stop influencing their daughter to take control of her health and leave the palace sometimes for a vacation. (The ICJ is in the Netherlands).
January 22, 2025
When I read about Empress Masako, it felt as though I had come to know an extraordinary woman trapped in a life she never truly chose. She was brilliant—an accomplished diplomat, educated at the world’s finest universities, with a career that promised boundless horizons. Masako was like a free bird soaring across the international stage, her wings brimming with confidence and ambition. But the moment she chose to marry Crown Prince Naruhito, the boundless sky she once called home transformed into a gilded cage she could never escape.
I am in awe of her courage. Imagine giving up the life you love for the sake of love itself—for a duty far greater than your own desires. Yet, alongside that admiration, I feel an overwhelming sadness for her. The rigid traditions of the Japanese imperial court demand absolute perfection and obedience, leaving little room for individuality or emotional freedom. Masako sacrificed so much: her career, her independence, even her health. She became a symbol of modernity forced into the confines of an ancient institution that reveres its traditions more than its people.
The most poignant part of her story is her struggle against the relentless pressure to produce a male heir. I cannot fathom the weight of living under constant public scrutiny, where your worth is measured by your ability to meet an archaic expectation. Not only did Masako face criticism from society, but she also endured the cold isolation of palace life, a place devoid of warmth and understanding.
She is like a radiant bird with shimmering feathers, yet imprisoned in a narrow cage. Her light still shines, even though her wings have long been clipped. There is an unyielding strength within her, one that refuses to be extinguished, and I see it in the faint smile she offers to the world. But behind that smile lies a deep reservoir of invisible pain and unspoken longing.
Masako’s story forces me to reflect on the meaning of happiness. Is it the freedom to follow your heart, or the willingness to sacrifice yourself for love and duty? To me, she embodies silent resilience—a woman who has given up so much yet continues to stand tall. Her journey is both heartbreaking and inspiring, a reminder of the quiet battles fought by those whose lives are not their own. Reading about her made me grateful for the freedom I enjoy, but also filled me with profound respect for a woman who, though trapped, chooses to endure with grace and dignity.
I am in awe of her courage. Imagine giving up the life you love for the sake of love itself—for a duty far greater than your own desires. Yet, alongside that admiration, I feel an overwhelming sadness for her. The rigid traditions of the Japanese imperial court demand absolute perfection and obedience, leaving little room for individuality or emotional freedom. Masako sacrificed so much: her career, her independence, even her health. She became a symbol of modernity forced into the confines of an ancient institution that reveres its traditions more than its people.
The most poignant part of her story is her struggle against the relentless pressure to produce a male heir. I cannot fathom the weight of living under constant public scrutiny, where your worth is measured by your ability to meet an archaic expectation. Not only did Masako face criticism from society, but she also endured the cold isolation of palace life, a place devoid of warmth and understanding.
She is like a radiant bird with shimmering feathers, yet imprisoned in a narrow cage. Her light still shines, even though her wings have long been clipped. There is an unyielding strength within her, one that refuses to be extinguished, and I see it in the faint smile she offers to the world. But behind that smile lies a deep reservoir of invisible pain and unspoken longing.
Masako’s story forces me to reflect on the meaning of happiness. Is it the freedom to follow your heart, or the willingness to sacrifice yourself for love and duty? To me, she embodies silent resilience—a woman who has given up so much yet continues to stand tall. Her journey is both heartbreaking and inspiring, a reminder of the quiet battles fought by those whose lives are not their own. Reading about her made me grateful for the freedom I enjoy, but also filled me with profound respect for a woman who, though trapped, chooses to endure with grace and dignity.
April 11, 2022
Having read The Thames and I: A Memoir of Two Years at Oxford and having visited some of the royal locations in Tokyo, I enjoyed reading about the couples' upbringing and how The Imperial Household Agency functions. As an Australian, it was interesting to read about Naruhito's time there for a home stay and how that was perceived by Australians who suffered during WWII.
It really made me think about how essential it is to have parents who value an elite education and how Masako, somewhat like Duchess of Cambridge, was set up for success by savvy, social climbing parents.
Unfortunately the author writes with a tabloid style snark and inserts himself into the book when it adds nothing to the main theme. For example, much of one chapter is on his experience covering the coronation Jean-Bédel Bokassa before somehow connecting that situation the Japanese emperor. Interesting yes, but relevant? No. He's dismissive of Shinto and suggests that "modern career woman" Masako must consider it as "mystical mumbo-jumbo." In typical tabloid style, these questions and suggestions are provided in place of facts. He refers to her as having a "Jekyll and Hyde" personality because she's sometimes family-oriented and serious, sometimes fun and social. One example, based on a university classmate source, is that she sometimes wore casual clothes and sometimes wore suits, as if having different clothes for different occasions is evidence of "inconsistency and instability."
This book is also sprinkled with odd "facts" such as quoting a survey that Japanese mothers "treated their sons to sexual favours as a reward for studying hard" and off putting theorising about why Masako, with her language skills and degrees, didn't stay overseas, marry a foreigner and avoid the "suffocating social conformity of Japan" or inserted by quoting phantom 'critics' - live as a "banana." For me, these questions over how an educated Japanese woman could participate in Shinto ceremonies or why she'd want to to live in Japan says more about the author's perceptions of Japan and Japanese women than it does about Masako.
It really made me think about how essential it is to have parents who value an elite education and how Masako, somewhat like Duchess of Cambridge, was set up for success by savvy, social climbing parents.
Unfortunately the author writes with a tabloid style snark and inserts himself into the book when it adds nothing to the main theme. For example, much of one chapter is on his experience covering the coronation Jean-Bédel Bokassa before somehow connecting that situation the Japanese emperor. Interesting yes, but relevant? No. He's dismissive of Shinto and suggests that "modern career woman" Masako must consider it as "mystical mumbo-jumbo." In typical tabloid style, these questions and suggestions are provided in place of facts. He refers to her as having a "Jekyll and Hyde" personality because she's sometimes family-oriented and serious, sometimes fun and social. One example, based on a university classmate source, is that she sometimes wore casual clothes and sometimes wore suits, as if having different clothes for different occasions is evidence of "inconsistency and instability."
This book is also sprinkled with odd "facts" such as quoting a survey that Japanese mothers "treated their sons to sexual favours as a reward for studying hard" and off putting theorising about why Masako, with her language skills and degrees, didn't stay overseas, marry a foreigner and avoid the "suffocating social conformity of Japan" or inserted by quoting phantom 'critics' - live as a "banana." For me, these questions over how an educated Japanese woman could participate in Shinto ceremonies or why she'd want to to live in Japan says more about the author's perceptions of Japan and Japanese women than it does about Masako.
April 13, 2022
When I went to Japan in the 80s Hirohito was still on the throne. Before we came back to Australia at the start of 1988, the NHK news showed footage every night of Hirohito in his hospital bed relaying his vital signs to the public. Back in Australia my wife and I married on the first day of the new emporer's reign, officially called the Heisei period. And then, thirty years later, with the resignation of the Heisei emperor Akihito, a new era dawned.
The new emperor Naruhito, llike his father, had married a commoner. Both Michiko and then Masako were expected to reform the monarchy breathing new life into the 2,600 year institution that is the chryanthemum throne. But both experienced severe mental health issues due to palace life. Ben Hills holds no punches in his book, all of which has been denied by both palace officials (the kunaicho) and members of parliament. Masako, the Harvard educated daughter of a career diplomat not only suffered mental health issues but also underwent fertility treatment trying to produce an heir. This has also been denied.
Hills' book was published in 2006. Masako has now been empress for four years. She and her husband the Reisei emperor Naruhito have a daughter Aiko who is a young adult. There is no more speculation about divorce and presumably the family have managed to bend the kunaicho to their will. The Japanese monarchy, Hills tells us, is one of only thirty left in the world. Reading his book makes it seem like reform is inevitable but, as can been with Masako, expectations about such reform need to be tempered. The cost to the individual is unimaginable.
The new emperor Naruhito, llike his father, had married a commoner. Both Michiko and then Masako were expected to reform the monarchy breathing new life into the 2,600 year institution that is the chryanthemum throne. But both experienced severe mental health issues due to palace life. Ben Hills holds no punches in his book, all of which has been denied by both palace officials (the kunaicho) and members of parliament. Masako, the Harvard educated daughter of a career diplomat not only suffered mental health issues but also underwent fertility treatment trying to produce an heir. This has also been denied.
Hills' book was published in 2006. Masako has now been empress for four years. She and her husband the Reisei emperor Naruhito have a daughter Aiko who is a young adult. There is no more speculation about divorce and presumably the family have managed to bend the kunaicho to their will. The Japanese monarchy, Hills tells us, is one of only thirty left in the world. Reading his book makes it seem like reform is inevitable but, as can been with Masako, expectations about such reform need to be tempered. The cost to the individual is unimaginable.
September 11, 2024
Tbh, I hated the first two-thirds of the book because of the author's condescending tone and obvious bias. It read very much like r/menwritingwomen with a sprinkling of bad dad jokes. His end analysis is right, though, in that the Kunaicho, the myriad of servants and officials controlling the imperial household for millennia, is a highly dysfunctional and outdated body in need of severe reform. Unfortunately, Prince Hisahito's birth quashed a major law from passing on the diet floor that would have overturned McCarthy's laws to allow Princess Aiko to succeed her father and open a door to possible changes.
The incredibly bright and talented Empress Masako, like her predecessor, had her will broken by the Kunaicho and because of them continues to suffer from severe stress and depression to this day. This woman should have been allowed to continue her diplomat work - she spoke six languages and had studied at Harvard and Oxford! Instead, the most fun she was allowed to have was raising silkworms and helping injured beetles. It's a shame that this is the bleak reality Prince Hisahito's future wife will mostly likely face whenever he reaches marrying age and takes a bride.
The incredibly bright and talented Empress Masako, like her predecessor, had her will broken by the Kunaicho and because of them continues to suffer from severe stress and depression to this day. This woman should have been allowed to continue her diplomat work - she spoke six languages and had studied at Harvard and Oxford! Instead, the most fun she was allowed to have was raising silkworms and helping injured beetles. It's a shame that this is the bleak reality Prince Hisahito's future wife will mostly likely face whenever he reaches marrying age and takes a bride.
January 23, 2018
And you thought Princess Diana had it bad. Hills cobbles together a picture of both Masako Owada and Prince Naruhito before their courtship and marriage using interviews with as many people as he can get access to - mostly academics and and a handful of childhood acquaintances.
The revelation that 74 out of 100 young Japanese women interviewed said they would never entertain the notion of marrying Naruhito or another royal flies in the face of so many Western girls who want to grow up to be a princess (hello media frenzy over Meghan Markle).
Without direct access to the royals or close family and friends, this feels more like an over-extended article on the author's theorising. It's still a sad story given that Masako still hasn't emerged in the 12 years since this book was published.
The revelation that 74 out of 100 young Japanese women interviewed said they would never entertain the notion of marrying Naruhito or another royal flies in the face of so many Western girls who want to grow up to be a princess (hello media frenzy over Meghan Markle).
Without direct access to the royals or close family and friends, this feels more like an over-extended article on the author's theorising. It's still a sad story given that Masako still hasn't emerged in the 12 years since this book was published.
March 16, 2025
This book must be taken with a grain of salt. While I'm sure Ben Hills gave it his best, it is impossible to know the "whole story" without having talked with the subject of the book herself.
I found the book incredibly boring. The style in which it was written (more conversational than academic), to me is not professional for a serious work. I did not appreciate the likening of Crown Prince Naruhito to wearing a "best in show for champion poulty award" on his wedding day. It feels as though the author is not respectful of the traditions of the Japanese monarchy, or the honors it bestows upon its members.
I give this book two stars for the descriptions of Masako and Naruhito's lives before their engagement and marriage. The rest of the book was very boring and difficult to get through.
I found the book incredibly boring. The style in which it was written (more conversational than academic), to me is not professional for a serious work. I did not appreciate the likening of Crown Prince Naruhito to wearing a "best in show for champion poulty award" on his wedding day. It feels as though the author is not respectful of the traditions of the Japanese monarchy, or the honors it bestows upon its members.
I give this book two stars for the descriptions of Masako and Naruhito's lives before their engagement and marriage. The rest of the book was very boring and difficult to get through.
December 7, 2017
This is a fascinating account of Japanese royalty and the extreme to which one woman and her family were forced to sacrifice to maintain the hereditary line. Unquestioned acceptance and a unbending bureaucracy maintain a costly Japanese tradition. That being said I felt that the author was determined to make such a case and perceived Japan from his own cultural lens too strongly. I sensed, perhaps incorrectly, that a love story may be hidden in Princess Masako's portrayal.
November 14, 2019
In light of the recent enthronement, I found this very interesting. I hope the author does a followup of how she is doing. What an accomplished woman with an amazing education-- the perfect empress. Pity the palace doesn't think so. No matter, I hope that she is able to carve out her place with her husband, the new emperor, and continue to be his perfect helpmate. A true love story, which was lovely and refreshing.
October 13, 2017
An interesting read but ultimately too polite in its investigation of how the Princess is perceived by longtime staff members of the royal household. I wonder if reading a biography about Masako's brother-in-law may present more insight. I would also be interested in reading any addendum's now that Masako is starting to go out in public more frequently.
November 7, 2022
Empress Masako has a very sad story surrounding her marriage, I can only hope that things have improved for the pair. I am interested to learn more of what becomes of Princess Aiko.
The structure of this book however was somewhat hard to follow as I feel like Hill jumps all over the place and has a lacklustre sense of writing.
The structure of this book however was somewhat hard to follow as I feel like Hill jumps all over the place and has a lacklustre sense of writing.
May 11, 2018
An interesting read on an unknown culture to me. Really feel for Masako. For a modern, educated professional woman to have to adapt to the submissive demands of an ancient medieval culture could only lead to mental pressures......enjoyed the read.
June 18, 2019
Definitely written by someone who has a bone to pick about Japan and its culture. At times it read like a cheap tabloid. Some insight to Japan and her people but wish the author was more respectful of other people’s beliefs and traditions.
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