Shoko Tendo(Author)
Tendo, the daughter of a yakuza (mob) boss, grew up in 1970s and '80s Japan, living through the booms and busts of life on the wrong side of the law. Her first published work, Shoko uses unpracticed but appropriately blunt prose to memoir her exceedingly arduous life; readers will appreciate her restrained but powerful details, especially during some of the harsher scenes. From age 12 onwards, Shoko's life was enveloped in drug addiction, poverty, psychological and sexual abuse, miscarriage, attempted suicide and the deaths of many close family members, set against a backdrop of Japan's ultra-secretive yakuza society. Admiration and a detached style keep Tendo from exploring any resentment she might harbor toward her criminal father, which may prove off-putting for some, but feels entirely honest given the emotional trauma Tendo suffers, and is as revealing for what it includes as for what it doesn't. Emotionally complex and thoroughly heart-rending, this book is recommended for anyone searching for a more thorough and personal understanding of Japanese society, and its darker corners, than is offered by more popular Japanese imports (movies, comic books) featuring similar subject matter.
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Emotionally complex and thoroughly heart-rending, this book is recommended for anyone searching for a more thorough and personal understanding of Japanese society." Publishers Weekly
"The first female ever to break the code of silence and speak about life for women in the underworld...her best-selling memoir shocked [Japan]... with its graphic accounts of her addictions to sex, drugs and violent lovers. " Marie Claire
[Tendos] story...shines a light into a dark and little understood corner of modern Japan." The Guardian
"The book offers a rare woman's view of Japan's criminal underbelly." The Independent
"Much has been written about Japan's gangsters - their full-body tattoos, boozing, womanizing, strict honor codes and occasional explosions of violence. Very little has been heard from their lovers, daughters or wives. Tendo has been all three." Bloomberg
"A chilling and tawdry tale about family life and romance among the yakuza." The Wall Street Journal
"A raw, heartbreaking account of damaged youth." Bust
"A thrilling memoir...an exclusive glimpse into a life rarely experienced firsthand." Time Out Chicago
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