Abstract
[Frederik L. Schodt] is not a professional historian, he is a professional Japanese-English interpreter. Though he traveled the world to research the book, I was surprised how much he focused on MacDonald's life in the English-speaking world and how little on his life in Japan. The work has a very colloquial tone, and Schodt puts himself into the story throughout as he recounts what the Friends of MacDonald society, a group of people united in their interest of MacDonald, have done in various places throughout the world to honor their hero. Re-organizing some of the material would strengthen the narrative. The key issue to understanding why MacDonald's adventure is so incredible is the fact that he entered Japan when the Japanese government was practicing sakoku. Throughout the work, Schodt declares that sakoku was a "cruel policy," yet the policy and the reasons for it are not explained until page 262. Sakoku should be discussed much earlier and in far more depth.Dym reviews Native American in the Land of the Shogun: Ranald MacDonald and the Opening of Japan by Frederik L. Schodt.