It is historical fiction. blackthorne did exist, did get samurai status and estate, did build ships for Toranaga (Tokugawa Ieyasu). The characters are real and

It is historical fiction. blackthorne did exist, did get samurai status and estate, did build ships for Toranaga (Tokugawa Ieyasu). The characters are real and James Clavell spent 4 years in Japan researching and writing the book. His depiction was rather accurate, though of course exaggerated and romanticized. http://www.columbia.edu/~hds2/learning/Learning_from_shogun_txt.pdf http://www.columbia.edu/~hds2/learning/Learning_from_shogun_...