YASUKE

An African man trains to be a samurai in Cosby’s historical novel.

In 16th-century Japan, a young noble named Nobunaga trains to become a samurai. When Nobunaga is 18, his father dies. Nobunaga’s uncles do not believe he should inherit leadership of the family, and several uncles and cousins challenge him. Nobunaga is determined to prove himself worthy and defeat his challengers; his conversations with Ostrimyo, his chief adviser, are an effective vehicle for exposition about how society in this period of Japan works. Nobunaga begins to step into his role as leader, but his family continues to behave treacherously and violently, striking at Nobunaga as they struggle for power. The young man proves to be a lethal foe; his triumph makes it clear he is the rightful heir, and Nobunaga vows revenge on those who have crossed him. Meanwhile, an African man named Majok runs a merchant ship by way of India, where he trained to be a warrior. He crosses the wrong man and puts his life in danger—to get away, he sets sail for Japan. Majok and Nobunaga meet in Sakai, where Majok is recruited into Nobunaga’s service. Majok is a proud man with a family, and he wants to secure their safety while avoiding being pulled back into slavery. He struggles at court, since many of Nobunaga’s family members and advisers don’t take him seriously. Nobunaga, though, is impressed and recruits him to train as a fighter. Once Majok completes his samurai training, he’s renamed Yasuke. Although the novel’s pacing is a little slow, the story is compelling, with some violence and much court intrigue. The author includes a lot of great detail; some of the descriptions of Japan, especially of the natural features, are quite beautiful (“the sun began to set over the lake, painting the water in shades of gold and crimson”), and the battle scenes are tightly composed and suspenseful. The ambiguous ending suggests this will be a continuing story.

An engaging historical epic.