Star of the Orient

[Aaron Gerow]

The New York Times Book Review has a review of Ian Buruma's new book  
Star of the Orient, a novel about Yamaguchi Yoshiko based in part on  
fact and part on fiction.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/05/books/review/Hammer-t.html? 
ei=5070&emc=eta1

The book, the review says, shows how Buruma is "fascinated by the  
power of the cinema in Japanese history, both as a cultural  
touchstone and as a political tool used by conquering armies."

A number of the characters are based on people we know (Sidney  
Vanoven is clearly Donald Richie) and it seems we could all play the  
game of trying to find out who is who.

Has anyone read it yet?


Aaron Gerow
KineJapan owner

Assistant Professor
Film Studies Program/East Asian Languages and Literatures
Yale University

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