Samurai Shortstop

by Alan Gratz

Many of you probably know by now that I am fascinated by the Japanese culture. During my long commute I listened to a book called SAMURAI SHORTSTOP by Alan Gratz. While I loved the story and the characters, what really made the book interesting for me was the historical aspect. In the version I listened to, the end had research information. The historical information is all about baseball and the change of Japan from Samurai to modern times.

SAMURAI SHORTSTOP follows Toyo at turn of the century Japan. The book starts with him helping his uncle commits suicide. As a samurai, this ritual death is fitting, but it leaves Toyo feeling confused as to where the old traditions fit in the new society. Japan isn’t like other countries. They didn’t gradually move into technology, but was rather thrown into it in 1876 when the old rulers were over thrown. Part of the new society involves the sport of baseball. About twenty years have passed since the change of society and people still have that awkward feeling about the changes. Toyo enters high school hoping to join the baseball team and from there learns that the old traditions of his uncle and the seemingly contradictory behavior of his father are more similar than he first realized.

As I mentioned earlier, I really enjoyed SAMURAI SHORTSTOP. The characters were vivid and I thought it was well told. Many of the situations in the story were based on true events. I like sports movies, but this book just added an extra element of a whole ‘nother culture. Comparing samurais to baseball was something I never considered. As an American, I know I will never truly understand what being a samurai truly means. We just don’t have anything to compare it to, but I do have a little more of an understanding that I use to.