Christopher > Recent Status Updates

Only 70 pages to go. Only 70 pages to go.

I'm not even sure why I hate this book so much. I've read and loved far duller books. There's a lot of interesting tidbits. Japan has a fascinating history and some of my favorite movies and novels are Japanese.

But every single time I open it up, I go crazy.

I'm still not sure I really understand the plot of this novel yet. I mean, I know what's happening to (some of) the characters, but what's the point? There's no real end goal in sight, like Lord of the Rings. Feels extremely random.

Incredibly fascinating. 10% done a 1200 page book and yet I'm worried it's going by too quickly.

Sansom may have been a good Japanologist, but he most definitely had the slightest flair for good, engaging writing of anyone I've ever read. His storytelling prowess so flat that he makes even the most exciting adventures feel boring. It's almost impressive. Besides, this is primarily a military history of Japan, with some brief asides on literature and religion. Not really my thing.

Way too many characters. Too much time between characters makes it hard to care for anyone. Right now I'm thinking 3/5, but I have hopes it'll improve.