Heart of a Samurai

Heart of a Samurai By: Margi Preus

This is a historical fiction novel based on Manjiro, a fourteen year old Japanese young man in 1841. Manjiro and his fishing partners set sail one day like a regular day, but they did not make it home.  They were shipwrecked on an island.  A group of "barbarians", Americans, finds them and takes them aboard their whaling ship.  Manjiro sets off on an adventure, and is known as the first Japanese person to set foot into America.  This is the story of how no matter what he does he always just wants to make it back home.

This was a fantastic historical fiction for teens. The story is interwoven with pictures that Manjiro drew of his experiences.  I enjoyed learning about him and thinking what an amazing adventure he had.  I thought it was interesting too to have a look at what it might have been like to be on a whaling ship. Great read!


I borrowed this from the public library.
ISBN: 978-0-8109-8981-8