What a delightful book! Pure serendipity that I read it - found an old Penguin in a charity shop and bought it just because it was about Japan, where I've been recently. First published in 1921 by a diplomat and someone who reflects the values and prejudices of his time, the book nevertheless transc

Een heel mooi verhaal opgebouwd rond de clash tussen Oost en West aan het begin van de 20ste eeuw. In tegenstelling tot andere commentaren vind ik het aspect “racisme” niet zo belangrijk. Het is een feit dat de Engelsen hun minachting voor andere volkeren en culturen niet onder stoelen of banken kon

Frank Trelawny Arthur Ashton- Gwatkin (1889- 1976) was an author who wrote under the pseudonym John Paris. He was also the British Ambassador to Japan in the 1920s and accompanied Crown Prince Hirohito to Great Britain in 1921. Later, he was with Chamberlain in Munich in 1938 during the appeasement

Captain Geoffrey Barrington marries Asako Fujinami in London in 1913. He's a big, blond boy from an old rich family that has come to the end of its money. She's Japanese and has spent almost her whole life in Paris with adopted parents. She has money; huge amounts arrive regularly from Japan.

London