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nereven's review
3.0
While certainly interesting, this was ultimately bogged down by extraneous history.
thameslink's review
4.0
No idea how I picked this up but really glad I did- it’s lovingly written and incredibly evocative. The section on kamikaze pilots is heartbreaking.
waiting4catbus's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
5.0
sydsnot71's review against another edition
4.0
This is one of those books that comes from a kind of reading tag. I've read a decent amount of Japanese literature recently - classic and modern, poetry and prose - and found myself fascinated by Japanese culture. And deeply imbedded in that is cherry blossom. Hence I picked up this book.
The thing about this book is it isn't simply a biography of 'Cherry' Ingram. It's also a cultural history of cherry trees in Japan. Some of the most fascinating stuff revolves around the way the militarised culture of Japan in the 1930s and 40s turned the Cherry tree into a symbol of sacrifice. Connecting the fall of cherry blossom with death in the name of the Emperor.
But 'Cherry' Ingram was one of those Englishmen whose wealth allowed them to carve out a corner of expertise untroubled by the pressures of work. His first love was ornithology, but then he gradually became fascinated by plants and then by Japan.
It's also not just the story of Ingram himself. It is a tribute to the dozens of people who were involved in propagating, planting and sharing their cherry knowledge and samples both in Japan and in Europe, the UK and the US.
It is also, surprisingly moving at a couple of points, which took me by surprise as did Ingram's early environmentalist credentials.
I read this on Kindle btw but I think I'd like to get a hard copy of it as there's a lot of lovely photos included. O and the page count is a little deceptive as again the main bulk of the text is about 65% of the count. Footnotes, appendices and index make up the rest.
Well worth a read.
The thing about this book is it isn't simply a biography of 'Cherry' Ingram. It's also a cultural history of cherry trees in Japan. Some of the most fascinating stuff revolves around the way the militarised culture of Japan in the 1930s and 40s turned the Cherry tree into a symbol of sacrifice. Connecting the fall of cherry blossom with death in the name of the Emperor.
But 'Cherry' Ingram was one of those Englishmen whose wealth allowed them to carve out a corner of expertise untroubled by the pressures of work. His first love was ornithology, but then he gradually became fascinated by plants and then by Japan.
It's also not just the story of Ingram himself. It is a tribute to the dozens of people who were involved in propagating, planting and sharing their cherry knowledge and samples both in Japan and in Europe, the UK and the US.
It is also, surprisingly moving at a couple of points, which took me by surprise as did Ingram's early environmentalist credentials.
I read this on Kindle btw but I think I'd like to get a hard copy of it as there's a lot of lovely photos included. O and the page count is a little deceptive as again the main bulk of the text is about 65% of the count. Footnotes, appendices and index make up the rest.
Well worth a read.
robyn_m's review
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.5
A robust history including samurai, kamikaze pilots, war atrocities, monocultures, species cultivation, international friendship, legacy, and more.
evangeline_miller's review
Unfortunately, I wasn't invested in Collingwood Ingram's backstory, which takes up the first quarter of the book. I just struggled to get past this section.