This first comprehensive history in English of Japanese ritual suicide
offers both action-packed stories that read like fiction, and invaluable
scholarship - now in paperback.
This impeccably researched survey looks at seppuku (or hara-kiri, as
it's more commonly known outside Japan) from ancient to modern times.
Author Andrew Rankin presents a selection of thrilling historical and
literary samurai stories, as well as details about every aspect of the
ritual, including: choosing and preparing the location, selecting a
second, what to wear, shaving the head and bathing, the cutting
technique, and different styles of seppuku. The author worked directly
from original sources, such as medieval war tales, documents of the
samurai clans, and execution handbooks; and provides much information
that has never appeared in English before.