"Any good books on Tokugawa Ieyasu?" Topic

I'm looking for something very readable on Tokugawa Ieyasu or about his court during his reign. I've looked around, but haven't found anything directly on point. I have historical sources on this period, but I'm looking more for "historical fiction" or something of a more entertaining and easy read. Specifically, I'm trying to get a feel for the period.

I have a vacation coming up and wanted more of a beach read. If it's too serious, I'll likely fall asleep.

Thanks,
-Steve

Interesting link (though I think the critic was too kind to Clavell). It's incomplete though without Tozon Shimazaki's Before the Dawn.

Sadler is a great source. It is serious, but Tokugawa Ieyasu's life was eventful enough that the book is still a very good read.

link

Thanks Condottiere, that's a great link. I've flipped through Shogun, and it seems a little western-centric for what I'm looking for.

Not to thread-jack, but I've been reading "Path of the Assassin" from Dark Horse Comics. It's from the same guys who did the "Lone Wolf & Cub" comics and it's about a ninja who protects Tokugawa Ieyasu during his rise to power. I think they're up to Volume 8 and they run around $10 USD a volume. Certainly not for the kiddies though, it can be graphic at times. It also reads right-to-left, they translated the Japanese into English, but did not alter the layout of the comic. It's a bit tricky, but you'll get used to it.

For a historical fiction I propose from Eiji Yoshikawa the book "Taiko". It is focossing not on Tokugawa but on Toyotomi Hideyoshi but describing the situation between the 3 people unifying Japan (Oda Nobunaga, Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi) it is a book about als these 3 daimyo.

For me it is the best fiction about Japan in that time. But I have to warn you it is a very large book. The German version has 864 pages.

Samurai Elb

Thanks, that sounds like a good read.

I second Taiko, it's one of my all time favorite books.