The most recommended books on feudalism

Who picked these books? Meet our 24 experts.

24 authors created a book list connected to feudalism, and here are their favorite feudalism books.
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Book cover of A History of Japan

Rob Goss Author Of Japan Traveler's Companion: Japan's Most Famous Sights From Okinawa to Hokkaido

From my list on get a deeper understanding of Japan.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been living in and writing about Japan for two decades—it’s where my wife and I have raised a bicultural family and where I don’t think I’ll ever run out of stories I want to tell. Whether written by Japanese or non-Japanese, I love reading work that documents Japan and its culture in an honest and thoughtful way. I hope you’ll try some of the books on this list because, with so much Japan coverage today veering towards cultural exoticism and fetishism or leaning on familiar stereotypes and tropes, it’s even more important to seek out great Japanese writing.

Rob's book list on get a deeper understanding of Japan

Rob Goss Why did Rob love this book?

For a concise history of Japan and a cultural primer on the country, I don’t think anything else is as easily digestible or insightful as this book. It does an incredible job of highlighting key periods in Japanese history, from the foundation of the first capital to the modernization of the Meiji era and the rise of militarism, while also covering the development of such things as religion, arts, and architectural styles.

What’s really impressive is that it does it all in just 400 pages: a far cry from some of the painfully heavy books I had to wade through studying history many years ago in college.

By R. H. P. Mason, J. G. Caiger,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A History of Japan as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A classic of Japanese history, this book is the preeminent work on the history of Japan.

Newly revised and updated, A History of Japan is a single-volume, complete history of the nation of Japan. Starting in ancient Japan during its early pre-history period A History of Japan covers every important aspect of history and culture through feudal Japan to the post-cold War period and collapse of the Bubble Economy in the early 1990's. Recent findings shed additional light on the origins of Japanese civilization and the birth of Japanese culture.

Also included is an in-depth analysis of the Japanese religion,…


Book cover of Shogun

Harry Castleman and Walter J. Podrazik Author Of Watching TV: American Television Season by Season

From Harry and Walter's 3 favorite reads in 2024.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Harry and Walter's 3 favorite reads in 2024

Harry Castleman and Walter J. Podrazik Why did Harry and Walter love this book?

One of the surprise successes of television in 2024 was FX’s ten-part re-staging of James Clavell’s epic 1975 novel Shogun (set in 17th century Japan), which had already been a hit in NBC’s 1980 mini-series version. This year’s reboot was much closer to Clavell’s focus and tone, and once the FX run ended, it sent us scurrying to read the original text.

Newly re-issued to tie in to the 2024 TV series, the unabridged novel was a surprisingly quick read for a hefty volume of over 1,300 pages. After struggling a bit to keep up with the complex action and cultural nuances of the series, reading the novel provided welcome time to digest the subtle undertones and a more detailed narrative that explained some confusing plot twists in the TV version. (Castleman/Podrazik)

By James Clavell,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Shogun as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Alternate Cover for 0440178002A bold English adventurer. An invincible Japanese warlord. A beautiful woman torn between two ways of life. All brought together in an extraordinary saga aflame with passion, conflict, ambition, and the struggle for power.Here is the world-famous novel of Japan that is the earliest book in James Clavell’s masterly Asian saga. Set in the year 1600, it tells the story of a bold English pilot whose ship was blown ashore in Japan, where he encountered two people who were to change his a warlord with his own quest for power, and a beautiful interpreter torn between two…


Book cover of Musashi: An Epic Novel Of The Samurai Era

Zara Yaqoob

From Zara's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Entrepreneur Book lover Explorer Lifelong learner (Japanese and Piano currently) Wannabe chef

Zara's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Zara Yaqoob Why did Zara love this book?

This book really felt like a religious and spiritual experience for me. It's almost like a manual on how to live one's life. We are following the main character, Miyamoto Mushasi, who is based on the real-life figure of the same name, as he journeys across Japan to become the best samurai to have lived.

We start with Musashi when he is young and naive, and we see him evolve into a mature man who becomes less self-absorbed and arrogant with time. We get Musashi's reflection on many topics: from being the best at what one does, to having balance in one's life, as well as the importance of relationships and isolation. If you're interested in Japanese history and culture, whilst also wanting a deeply philosophical read that will make you think, then I strongly recommend this one for you.

Note: bear in mind, this book is split into volumes,…

By Eiji Yoshikawa, Charles Terry (translator),

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Musashi as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The classic samurai novel about the real exploits of the most famous swordsman. The classic samurai novel about the real exploits of the most famous swordsman. Miyamoto Musashi was the child of an era when Japan was emerging from decades of civil strife. Lured to the great Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 by the hope of becoming a samurai-without really knowing what it meant-he regains consciousness after the battle to find himself lying defeated, dazed and wounded among thousands of the dead and dying. On his way home, he commits a rash act, becomes a fugitive and brings life in


Book cover of Low City, High City: Tokyo from Edo to the Earthquake, 1867-1923

Michael Pronko Author Of Tokyo Traffic

From my list on Tokyo’s essence.

Why am I passionate about this?

My four novels and three sets of writings are all about Tokyo. I rely not only on my daily observations, personal experiences, and reactions to the city, but on the responses of others to the city. I’ve used all these books to better understand the place where I’ve lived and worked for over two decades. I’ve written about various aspects of Japan for numerous publications, editorials for The Japan Times, art and architecture reviews for Artscape Japan, personal columns on Tokyo life for Newsweek Japan, and reviews and interviews on the vibrant jazz scene for my Jazz in Japan website. I continue to find Tokyo a mesmerizing place to spend my working and writing—and wandering—life. Living here is like traveling every day.

Michael's book list on Tokyo’s essence

Michael Pronko Why did Michael love this book?

This marvelous history of Tokyo focuses on the transformative 50 years from the end of the Tokugawa (Edo) period in 1867 to the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923. Translator and Japanologist Seidensticker tells the history like the grand journey it was. His narrative is fascinating, with more insights than facts, and it flows with the skill of someone who translated the great Japanese novelists Junichiro Tanizaki, Kafu Nagai, and Yasunari Kawabata, among others. Seidensticker includes thoughtfully chosen details as Tokyo emerges from a feudal society into a modern, industrial state. Seidensticker’s follow-up Tokyo Rising is also recommended.

By Edward G. Seidensticker,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Low City, High City as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Presents a cultural history of Toyko, tracing transformations and preservations and East-West collisions, from the Meiji Restoration of 1867 to the Earthquake of 1923


Book cover of Tokyo: A Biography: Disasters, Destruction and Renewal: The Story of an Indomitable City

Michael Pronko Author Of Tokyo Traffic

From my list on Tokyo’s essence.

Why am I passionate about this?

My four novels and three sets of writings are all about Tokyo. I rely not only on my daily observations, personal experiences, and reactions to the city, but on the responses of others to the city. I’ve used all these books to better understand the place where I’ve lived and worked for over two decades. I’ve written about various aspects of Japan for numerous publications, editorials for The Japan Times, art and architecture reviews for Artscape Japan, personal columns on Tokyo life for Newsweek Japan, and reviews and interviews on the vibrant jazz scene for my Jazz in Japan website. I continue to find Tokyo a mesmerizing place to spend my working and writing—and wandering—life. Living here is like traveling every day.

Michael's book list on Tokyo’s essence

Michael Pronko Why did Michael love this book?

This biography by writer and photographer Mansfield is probably the best guide into Tokyo’s vibrantly organic nature. To get a thorough line on the largest city in the world isn’t easy, but Mansfield carefully selects the most relevant, and interesting details. Inevitably, it’s a work of exclusion as much as inclusion, but is magnificent for that. Seeing and understanding Tokyo requires getting past the cascade of small details that keep you from seeing the whole forest. Mansfield keeps his biography flowing with the right balance of telling details and insightful summary. His companion volume, Tokyo, a Cultural History is also excellent, as are his beautifully photographed books on Japanese gardens.

By Stephen Mansfield,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Tokyo as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The history of Tokyo is as eventful as it is long. A concise yet detailed overview of this fascinating, centuries-old city, Tokyo: A Biography is a perfect companion volume for history buffs or Tokyo-bound travelers looking to learn more about their destination.

In a whirlwind journey through Tokyo's past from its earliest beginnings up to the present day, this Japanese history book demonstrates how the city's response to everything from natural disasters to regime change has been to reinvent itself time and again. A calamitous fire results in a massive expansion of the city's territory. A debate over the Samurai…


Book cover of African Samurai: The True Story of Yasuke, a Legendary Black Warrior in Feudal Japan

Uma Krishnaswami Author Of Book Uncle and Me

From Uma's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Writer Knitter Ex-child Daydreamer Bird-watcher

Uma's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Uma Krishnaswami Why did Uma love this book?

I loved this deep dive into a history that I knew absolutely nothing about.

It’s the story of an enslaved man from East Africa transported by the Portuguese to Japan, left behind there with a Jesuit mission. He came to fight alongside feudal lord Odo Nobunaga to become Japan’s first foreign-born samurai. What? He’d been in India before that?

Every chapter yielded something new I didn’t know and it’s all really well contextualized. The writers make it clear where the gaps in documentation lie, even as they tell a gripping story and bring a larger-than-life character to the page.

By Thomas Lockley, Geoffrey Girard,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked African Samurai as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"A readable, compassionate account of an extraordinary life.” —The Washington Post

The remarkable life of history’s first foreign-born samurai, and his astonishing journey from Northeast Africa to the heights of Japanese society.

Warrior. Samurai. Legend.

When Yasuke arrived in Japan in the late 1500s, he had already traversed much of the known world. Kidnapped as a child in Northeast Africa, he served as a bodyguard to the head of the Jesuits in Asia, traveling to India and China, and eventually arriving in Japan, where everything would change.

Most Japanese people had never seen an African man before. Some believed he…


Book cover of A History of Japan
Book cover of Shogun
Book cover of Musashi: An Epic Novel Of The Samurai Era

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