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Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy

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Biography in English of Kawashima Yoshiko, the Chinese princess
Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy
First edition cover
AuthorPhyllis Birnbaum
PublisherColumbia University Press
Publication date2015

Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy: The Story of Kawashima Yoshiko, the Cross-Dressing Spy Who Commanded Her Own Army is a 2015 book by Phyllis Birnbaum, published by Columbia University Press.

It is about Yoshiko Kawashima and covers it up to the point of her trial. According to the author, the reputation of Kawashima being a soldier and spy was likely inflated.

Background

The author previously had translated existing works and wrote her own books, including novels. She also served as a historian, focusing on Japan. The author conducted interviews, including of Kawashima's relatives who were still alive.

Contents

Two chapters are not about Kawashima per se but instead focus on others: one on her father and another on Hiro Saga, to which Kawashima is compared. Stephen Joyce of the Asian Review of Books wrote that "While interesting, these chapters feel like separate academic essays or history magazine articles rather than elements of a cohesive biography."

Reception

Joyce described it as "In some ways an unconventional biography".

Iain Maloney of The Japan Times wrote that because the author was careful to only present information for which actual historical evidence existed, readers expecting colorful accounts of the "myth" behind Kawashima may be disappointed, and that as there is more verified information available, the second part of the book had a better "pace". Maloney concluded "Kawashima was irrepressible and so is her story, refusing to conform to a conventional biography."

Jamie Fisher of The New York Times wrote that the book "grasps at but never quite captures Yoshiko’s spirit".

Daniel A. Métraux of Mary Baldwin University wrote that the book is "a fine history" and concluded that it is "a fascinating tale".

See also

References

Citations

  1. ^ Fisher, Jamie (2015-05-03). "'Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy,' by Phyllis Birnbaum". The New York Times. Retrieved 2019-08-16.
  2. ^ Joyce, Stephen (2015-06-21). "Review: Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy". The Diplomat. Asian Review of Books. Retrieved 2019-08-16. - Original page at the Asian Review of Books
  3. ^ Métraux, p. 496.
  4. ^ Maloney, Iain (2015-02-14). "Manchu Princess, Japanese Spy: The Story of Kawashima Yoshiko, the Cross-Dressing Spy Who Commanded Her Own Army". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2019-08-16.

Bibliography

External links


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