The Revenge of the Forty-Seven Samurai

In the time when the Shogun ruled Japan, two hundred samurai suffered a grave insult—their master met an unjust death. Forty-seven of them are courageous enough to avenge him. Jiro is a lowly servant to one of the brave samurai. Chosen as his master’s unlikely spy during the planning of the great revenge, Jiro must learn when to talk and when to listen, or at any moment he could lose his head to a samurai’s razor-sharp sword. And even as Jiro plays his small part in the unfolding plot, he searches for the truth about his own identity.

"The story. . . is a true one, based on a historical event still commemorated in Japan. The characterizations are memorable, and the fabric of daily life, woven so carefully into the tale, is easily absorbed." Booklist, ALA