thedrifter
10-28-07, 08:20 AM
Sniper Swagger with a sword? C'mon
By William Porter
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 10/26/2007 11:04:06 PM MDT
Fans of Stephen Hunter are familiar with the exploits of Bob Lee Swagger, the best-selling novelist's retired Marine master sniper.
But here's some news: Turns out the old gunny sergeant is just as deadly with a sword as he is with a rifle.
The upside of this: It delivers chills and thrills in "The 47th Samurai," Hunter's latest excursion into Swagger's not-so-peaceful retirement.
The downside: It also creates the book's central challenge, particularly for readers who can't quite suspend their doubts that an aging gaijin could master enough martial skills in a few days to take on the most fearsome yakuza swordsmen in the Tokyo underworld.
"The 47th Samurai" explores the meeting of men from two cultures, each in pursuit of a legendary samurai sword and each with hard-bitten notions of honor.
Hunter opens the tale with a flashback to Iwo Jima in February 1945, when U.S. Marines battled Japan's elite Imperial forces, creating hell in a very small place. The sword's owner is Hideki Yono, an officer tasked with dying for his country. Earl Swagger is the Marine who kills him in an engagement that earns him the Medal of Honor - and the sword.
Flash forward 60 years. Earl's son Bob Lee learns that the sword was given to his late father's commanding officer, who secreted it in a golf bag. Swagger sets out to return it to its rightful owner in Japan, a man named Philip Yano, son of that soldier on Iwo Jima.
The two discover that what was thought to be a simple officer's sword is the ancient shin-shinto katano, a national artifact. It's akin to a Marine colonel learning that his dress sword was carried by George Washington at Valley Forge.
But Yano and his family are slaughtered by sword-wielding assassins led by Kondo, a ranking member of the Japanese underworld seeking the sword to bring glory to his master.
Swagger, a Vietnam veteran with a singular sense of honor and a taste for the cold comforts of revenge, sets out to take down Kondo. His allies: Susan Okada, a tough American-born CIA operative, and Nick Yamamoto, a tabloid journalist with a nose for Tokyo's demi-monde. Oh, yes, there's a darling little girl who is the sole survivor of the butchered Yano family. (Confess: You're already casting the Hollywood movie in your head.)
The ex-sniper faces a small problem. His talent is in killing people at 700 yards in a crosswind, a skill set that doesn't quite translate to the teeming streets of Tokyo.
So he repairs to the nearest dojo, where he's schooled in the way of samurai swordsmanship. A few days and strained muscles later, he's ready to cleave his way through a small army of yakuza. Which he does, just like Sherman through Georgia.
Not to be a literalist killjoy, but this beggars belief. Yes, we know that Ted Williams, one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, turned himself into a world-class fisherman. And the great Formula One driver Jackie Stewart missed making Britain's 1960 Olympic skeet-shooting team by one clay pigeon.
But turning yourself into a samurai master in less time than it takes to paint your house? You might as well decide at age 60 to play point guard in the NBA.
This is not to say "The 47th Samurai" isn't a worthwhile read. It is. Hunter, who has written such snapping books as "Point of Impact" and "Hot Springs," is terrific with plot, action and attention to detail. His payback scenes pay off.
Still, it would have been no crime to let Swagger bring a handgun to a swordfight. If memory serves, that strategy once worked pretty well for an action hero named Indiana Jones.
William Porter: 303-954-1877 or wporter@denverpost.com
FICTION
The 47th Samurai,
by Stephen Hunter, $26
Ellie
By William Porter
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 10/26/2007 11:04:06 PM MDT
Fans of Stephen Hunter are familiar with the exploits of Bob Lee Swagger, the best-selling novelist's retired Marine master sniper.
But here's some news: Turns out the old gunny sergeant is just as deadly with a sword as he is with a rifle.
The upside of this: It delivers chills and thrills in "The 47th Samurai," Hunter's latest excursion into Swagger's not-so-peaceful retirement.
The downside: It also creates the book's central challenge, particularly for readers who can't quite suspend their doubts that an aging gaijin could master enough martial skills in a few days to take on the most fearsome yakuza swordsmen in the Tokyo underworld.
"The 47th Samurai" explores the meeting of men from two cultures, each in pursuit of a legendary samurai sword and each with hard-bitten notions of honor.
Hunter opens the tale with a flashback to Iwo Jima in February 1945, when U.S. Marines battled Japan's elite Imperial forces, creating hell in a very small place. The sword's owner is Hideki Yono, an officer tasked with dying for his country. Earl Swagger is the Marine who kills him in an engagement that earns him the Medal of Honor - and the sword.
Flash forward 60 years. Earl's son Bob Lee learns that the sword was given to his late father's commanding officer, who secreted it in a golf bag. Swagger sets out to return it to its rightful owner in Japan, a man named Philip Yano, son of that soldier on Iwo Jima.
The two discover that what was thought to be a simple officer's sword is the ancient shin-shinto katano, a national artifact. It's akin to a Marine colonel learning that his dress sword was carried by George Washington at Valley Forge.
But Yano and his family are slaughtered by sword-wielding assassins led by Kondo, a ranking member of the Japanese underworld seeking the sword to bring glory to his master.
Swagger, a Vietnam veteran with a singular sense of honor and a taste for the cold comforts of revenge, sets out to take down Kondo. His allies: Susan Okada, a tough American-born CIA operative, and Nick Yamamoto, a tabloid journalist with a nose for Tokyo's demi-monde. Oh, yes, there's a darling little girl who is the sole survivor of the butchered Yano family. (Confess: You're already casting the Hollywood movie in your head.)
The ex-sniper faces a small problem. His talent is in killing people at 700 yards in a crosswind, a skill set that doesn't quite translate to the teeming streets of Tokyo.
So he repairs to the nearest dojo, where he's schooled in the way of samurai swordsmanship. A few days and strained muscles later, he's ready to cleave his way through a small army of yakuza. Which he does, just like Sherman through Georgia.
Not to be a literalist killjoy, but this beggars belief. Yes, we know that Ted Williams, one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, turned himself into a world-class fisherman. And the great Formula One driver Jackie Stewart missed making Britain's 1960 Olympic skeet-shooting team by one clay pigeon.
But turning yourself into a samurai master in less time than it takes to paint your house? You might as well decide at age 60 to play point guard in the NBA.
This is not to say "The 47th Samurai" isn't a worthwhile read. It is. Hunter, who has written such snapping books as "Point of Impact" and "Hot Springs," is terrific with plot, action and attention to detail. His payback scenes pay off.
Still, it would have been no crime to let Swagger bring a handgun to a swordfight. If memory serves, that strategy once worked pretty well for an action hero named Indiana Jones.
William Porter: 303-954-1877 or wporter@denverpost.com
FICTION
The 47th Samurai,
by Stephen Hunter, $26
Ellie