A Gentleman from Japan

The Untold Story of an Incredible Journey from Asia to Queen Elizabeth’s Court

By: Thomas Lockley

Narrated by: Gary Furlong

An incredible sea story that turns the Age of Exploration on its head, following the first Japanese man to set foot on North America and England.

On November 12, 1588, five young Asian men—led by a twenty-one-year-old called Christopher—traveled up the River Thames to meet Queen Elizabeth I. Christopher’s epic sea voyage had spanned from Japan, via the Philippines, New Spain (Mexico), Java and Southern Africa. On the way, he had already become the first recorded Japanese person in North America. Now Christopher was the first ever Japanese visitor to England, and no other would leave such a legacy for centuries to come.

The story of Christopher is almost utterly forgotten and has never been fully told before.

A Gentleman from Japan is a fast-paced, historical narrative of adventure, cross-cultural endeavor, intellectual exchange, perseverance, espionage and conflict in the Age of Exploration.

Wonderful storytelling

The release timing of the book coincides with the beautiful FX series Shogun which left me wanting more from this time period. Written in just enough detail to wisk me away rather than getting caught in the weeds. Truly amazing to learn how this young man was so pivotal to our western world.

Based on a true story

As the author explains in a final note, we know little about him. The author does a pretty good job telling a likely story (along with extraneous details), but the story is naturally shaped by current ideology. This is fun and has good information, but it is more a historical novel than a history. What we really know about the Japanese man could probably be told in less than a half hour.