We have received proof copies of Professor Paul Barclay’s second edition of his tome Kondo the Barbarian. The book officially goes on sale November 1, but can be preordered. If you frequent Bookshop.org, here is a link.
I’m a bit of a history nerd so I welcomed the chance to help keep Paul’s book in print. Here’s some more detail about it:
Kondo the Barbarian is a gripping and revealing account of the colonial Japanese era in Taiwan, focusing on theMusha Rebellion and its brutal suppression by the Japanese military. The book presents the translated account of Kondō Katsusaburō, a Japanese adventurer who married into an indigenous Taiwanese family. Kondō’s journals offer an intimate and personal perspective on the events, though they can also be unreliable and prone to sensationalism.
The book sheds light on the cultural clashes and sporadic violence that characterized Taiwan during this period. Through the writing of Kondō, interpreted and contextualized by Barclay, readers gain insight into the complexities of colonialism, imperialism, and indigenous resistance.
The Musha Rebellion was a pivotal moment in the relationship between the indigenous people and the Japanese colonial government. In 1930, after years of oppression, the Seediq people of central Taiwan, led by Mona Rudao, attacked a gathering of Japanese people at a local school, slaughtering over one hundred men, women, and children. The Japanese military responded with overwhelming force, employing tactics including poison gas, artillery, and aerial bombardment to quell the rebellion.
Also on campus, student Allison Faye Stein, author of 2062: Sally in Spectropia, was featured in The Lafayette, Lafayette College’s student newspaper. The middle grade, science fiction chapter book, illustrated by Joseph Swarctz, follows Sally as she solves mysteries to save her town.
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