Daughters of the Samurai
A Journey from East to West and Back
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Narrated by:
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Emily Zeller
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By:
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Janice P. Nimura
About this listen
In 1871, five young girls were sent by the Japanese government to the United States. Their mission: learn Western ways and return to help nurture a new generation of enlightened men to lead Japan. Raised in traditional samurai households during the turmoil of civil war, three of these unusual ambassadors - Sutematsu Yamakawa, Shige Nagai, and Ume Tsuda - grew up as typical American schoolgirls. Upon their arrival in San Francisco, they became celebrities, their travels and traditional clothing exclaimed over by newspapers across the nation. As they learned English and Western customs, their American friends grew to love them for their high spirits and intellectual brilliance. The passionate relationships they formed reveal an intimate world of cross-cultural fascination and connection. Ten years later they returned to Japan - a land grown foreign to them - determined to revolutionize women's education. Based on in-depth archival research in Japan and in the United States, including decades of letters from between the three women and their American host families, Daughters of the Samurai is beautifully, cinematically written, a fascinating lens through which to view an extraordinary historical moment.
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The life of Princess May of Teck is one of the great Cinderella stories in history. From a family of impoverished nobility, she was chosen by Queen Victoria as the bride for her eldest grandson, the scandalous Duke of Clarence, heir to the throne, who died mysteriously before their marriage. Despite this setback, she became queen, mother of two kings, grandmother of the current queen, and a lasting symbol of the majesty of the British throne.
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Wow! Did not want this to end!
- By Susan Nall Sheehan on 07-16-17
By: Anne Edwards
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Franklin and Lucy
- President Roosevelt, Mrs. Rutherfurd, and the Other Remarkable Women in His Life
- By: Joseph E. Persico
- Narrated by: Ted Barker
- Length: 17 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Franklin Delano Roosevelt was arguably the greatest figure of the 20th century. While FDR's official circle was predominantly male, it was his relationships with women - particularly with Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd - that most vividly bring to light the human being beneath this towering statesman.
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Franklin and Lucy
- By Connie's on 03-06-09
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Eleanor Roosevelt
- Volume I, 1884-1933
- By: Blanche Wiesen Cook
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 22 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Eleanor Roosevelt was born into the privileges and prejudices of American aristocracy and into a family ravaged by alcoholism. She overcame debilitating roots: in her public life, fighting against racism and injustice and advancing the rights of women; and in her private life, forming lasting intimate friendships with some of the great men and women of her time.
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One of the Great Americans I knew too little about
- By Ray M on 07-19-20
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Desert Queen
- The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia
- By: Janet Wallach
- Narrated by: Jean Gilpin
- Length: 20 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Turning her back on her privileged life in Victorian England, Gertrude Bell (1868-1926), fired by her innate curiosity, journeyed the world and became fascinated with all things Arab. Traveling the length and breadth of the Arab region, armed with a love for its language and its people, she not only produced several enormously popular books based on her experiences but became instrumental to the British foreign office. When World War I erupted, and the British needed the loyalty of the Arab leaders, it was Gertrude Bell's work and connections that helped provided the brain for T. E. Lawrence's military brawn.
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Great beginning, then gets boring
- By Msz on 03-31-16
By: Janet Wallach
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The Last Castle
- The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home
- By: Denise Kiernan
- Narrated by: Denise Kiernan
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Orphaned at a young age, Edith Stuyvesant Dresser claimed lineage from one of New York's best known families. She grew up in Newport and Paris, and her engagement and marriage to George Vanderbilt was one of the most watched events of Gilded Age society. But none of this prepared her to be mistress of Biltmore House. Before their marriage, the wealthy and bookish Vanderbilt had dedicated his life to creating a spectacular European-style estate on 125,000 acres of North Carolina wilderness.
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Very factual
- By Jennifer on 11-28-17
By: Denise Kiernan
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Victoria & Abdul (Movie Tie-in)
- The True Story of the Queen's Closest Confidant
- By: Shrabani Basu
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Jasicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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History’s most unlikely friendship - this is the astonishing story of Queen Victoria and her dearest companion, the young Indian Munshi Abdul Karim. In the twilight years of her reign, after the devastating deaths of her two great loves - Prince Albert and John Brown - Queen Victoria meets tall and handsome Abdul Karim, a humble servant from Agra waiting tables at her Golden Jubilee. The two form an unlikely bond and within a year Abdul becomes a powerful figure at court, the Queen’s teacher, her counsel on Urdu and Indian affairs, and a friend close to her heart.
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Honestly, can’t finish yet.
- By Cassie on 12-30-17
By: Shrabani Basu
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The Greater Journey
- Americans in Paris
- By: David McCullough
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 16 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The Greater Journey is the enthralling, inspiring—and until now, untold—story of the adventurous American artists, writers, doctors, politicians, architects, and others of high aspiration who set off for Paris in the years between 1830 and 1900, ambitious to excel in their work.
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McCullough takes it to the next level
- By gregory m loyd on 07-12-11
By: David McCullough
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Elizabeth the Queen
- The Life of a Modern Monarch
- By: Sally Bedell Smith
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 21 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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From the moment of her ascension to the throne in 1952 at the age of twenty-five, Queen Elizabeth II has been the object of unparalleled scrutiny. But through the fog of glamour and gossip, how well do we really know the world’s most famous monarch? Drawing on numerous interviews and never-before-revealed documents, acclaimed biographer Sally Bedell Smith pulls back the curtain to show in intimate detail the public and private lives of Queen Elizabeth II.
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The world's longest public relations statement
- By Truth Speaker on 01-30-12
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George and Marina
- Duke and Duchess of Kent
- By: Christopher Warwick
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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For eight brief years, before he was tragically killed in a mysterious air crash during the Second World War, Prince George, Duke of Kent, son of King George V and Queen Mary, and his beautiful wife, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, were the British monarchy's - indeed, high society's - most glamorous royal couple; and as golden royal icons, they are still remembered.
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Engaging
- By Jean on 06-02-17
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Marmee and Louisa
- The Untold Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Mother
- By: Eve LaPlante
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 14 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Biographers have consistently credited her father, Bronson Alcott, for Louisa May Alcott's professional success, assuming that this outspoken idealist was the source of her progressive thinking and remarkable independence. But in this riveting dual biography, Eve LaPlante explodes those myths, drawing on unknown and unexplored letters and journals to show that Louisa's "Marmee", Abigail May Alcott, was in fact the intellectual and emotional center of her daughter's world. It was Abigail who urged Louisa to write, who inspired many of her stories, and who gave her the support and courage she needed to pursue her path.
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Hardworking women and the man they supported
- By Chris on 04-26-13
By: Eve LaPlante
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Her Little Majesty
- The Life of Queen Victoria
- By: Carolly Erickson
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Her Little Majesty is a fresh and fascinating portrait of the diminutive monarch who ruled the vast British empire for over 60 years. Award-winning biographer and historian, Carolly Erickson, transports you behind the walls of Buckingham Palace to introduce you to the quirky, loveable Queen Victoria—revealed only to her closest associates. Emotionally deprived, inadequately educated, and socially isolated for much of her life, young Victoria felt ill-prepared to ascend the throne.
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Disappointing after Josephine.
- By Debra V on 08-24-21
By: Carolly Erickson
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The Romanov Sisters
- The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra
- By: Helen Rappaport
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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They were the Princess Dianas of their day—perhaps the most photographed and talked about young royals of the early twentieth century. The four captivating Russian Grand Duchesses—Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia Romanov—were much admired for their happy dispositions, their looks, the clothes they wore and their privileged lifestyle. Over the years, the story of the four Romanov sisters and their tragic end in a basement at Ekaterinburg in 1918 has clouded our view of them, leading to a mass of sentimental and idealized hagiography.
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Made you want to change the ending
- By MissSusie66 on 01-23-15
By: Helen Rappaport
What listeners say about Daughters of the Samurai
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Buretto
- 10-09-21
Wonderfully woven, insightful history
This book is such a delight, as it works on so many levels. The story takes us through the naive innocence of young girls, to the discovery in young womanhood and finally through to the triumphs, tragedies and regrets as mature adults. And throughout, there are the interwoven themes of class, gender, and ethnicity that must be navigated. And the book is not overly sentimental or unfairly charitable. The young women, at times, can come off as entitled and elitist, as products of their upbringing, both Japanese and American, but at other times can appear inspiringly strong and defiant. These are real people with real strengths and real shortcomings.
Of particular note was the effort for equitable distribution of praise and blame of the best and worst elements of cultural influence. The treatment of these young ladies in America, while certainly sexist and racist in fair measure, is tempered by the notion that the pre-Meiji, Tokugawa shogunate had little in the way of progressive philosophies on those counts, either. Even the lives of privileged women was limited. It is however a bit curious that while American attitudes of womanhood are held up as enlightened, it's important to note that American women had only secured the right to own property a few decades earlier, and wouldn't be given the vote for several decades in the future. But it is all relative, I suppose. The one poignant moment in the book is the reaction of one of the girls to Chinese in San Francisco. Having received elite American "refinement", she's filled with disdain, without any sense of irony, over their ethnic inadequacy. This from her now adopted American perspective, and clearly not primarily a Japanese born prejudice. This is the weaving together of the class and ethnic identities which makes the book so unique and insightful.
Although I thoroughly enjoyed the book, it's worth mentioning a few things. There is a period, for about the first 6 chapters, or the first third of the book, where the young ladies are supporting characters in their own story. I'd feared it would continue, but as the story proceeded, they became more prominent. I was a bit surprised at how short the time in America was covered. It seemed no sooner had they arrived, and had their academic challenges and triumphs, when they were on their way back.
And with regard to another review about Japanese pronunciations... there's no problem. A few place and newspaper names might be a bit off, but by and large, the names of people were perfectly fine and understandable. In fact, I found more strange pronunciations in the English. But certainly nothing to distract from this wonderful book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- TMK
- 07-06-16
Engrossing Well Researched
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes. Nimura makes this time period spring to life by focusing on several women's lives and experiences.
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1 person found this helpful
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- NAC
- 01-13-17
Women who overcome
While the audio performance is a bit stilted the story of 3 Japanese girls sent to the US to be educated and their adult life in Japan is easy to enjoy. A story of lifelong friendships and perseverance in the face of cultural obstructions tells how these women, along with their American friends and supporters have an impact on women's education, society, and their lives in Japan.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Shazz
- 10-23-16
Need a different narrator
Narrator is not familiar with pronunciation of Japanese names making it difficult for me to understand places and names.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Robert Urbanek
- 10-07-19
Wonderful
It starts slow but after coupe pages you can't get enough. Excellent narrator and the story out of this world.
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- Sky watcher
- 06-28-23
Interesting story that could have been better written
Background historical info is delivered in a way that takes me out of the story. It sounds like a reading of a college capstone rather than a more artfully crafted narrative.
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- Tanya
- 05-29-24
Distracting reader performance, gets in way of the enjoyment of the story.
Sadly, the performer trivialized Ume with her horrible high pitched child like rendition of Ume.
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- Alis Marachelian
- 05-30-24
Beautiful story of times we never lived but we continue to experience… as women.
Beautiful story of times we never lived but we continue to experience… as women. Vivid descriptions come alive as the story is narrated transporting between Japan and US. A story of how far women have come along in opening doors to other women for education… and the reminder to never take it for granted.
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