057 4 King Rat is Clavell's best work . The story is engrossing , with an intriguing plot and beautifully worded prose . Readers may be so amazed at this fact that they ignore the larger genius inside the work - - a study of human suffering , survival , competition , ethics , and beliefs . Fears , petty hatreds , pleasures , religious convictions , and the constraint of social rules are all subjected to a scrutiny which turns one's views upside down . The wisdom that Mr . Clavell gained out of his experience at Changi during the war is expressed perfectly in this fictional account of life at that prison camp ; the commentary on humanity seen in all of his other books in the Asian Saga are first seen here . Quite simply , a MUST READ ! ! !
062 4 The King visits the jungle village . James has shown them to be predominantly Muslims . Yet they are having a feast of Pork . I have read and have all the books of James Clavell and enjoy them . I feel this is a gross mistake .
VIRENDRA PAWAR PUNE INDIA e-mail : delta @ vsnl.com
067 4 The whole time devoted to reading this book was a magic spell to me . This book must be recommended as a text book for students . Because you can see the diffrences between haves and have-nots , how they become what they are , how strong the diffrences are . In KOREA we have a similar novel OUR DISTORTED HERO by a famous writer . but ' KING RAT is more vivid and has more juice . Reading this book you are going to see what your life will be like . And in the end you are going to get this result , LIFE IS BUT A DREAM
King Rat ( Kindle Edition )
Just finished Kindle version of King Rat , by James Clavell .
This book is the product of a bad OCR-scan to make it Kindle-ready .
- Quotation marks are often backwards , particularly in double-quotations .
- The elipses character ( . . . ) which is used often in this book , is translated as an ampersand ( & ) .
- Good luck with anything italicized . I sometimes had to track down the paperback version to figure it out .
These typos are prevalent and knocked a full star off my review .
A scheming , hustling American Army corporal known as The King befriends an upper-crust Royal Air Force leftennant in a Japanese WWII POW camp . Both men adhere to well-developed , but radically different , codes of honor , and the novel is an exploration of their unlikely friendship and struggle to remain men ( by their definitions ) against the corrupting desolation of the prison . The matter-of-fact tone of King Rat pegs it as a 1960s paperback . Brutality and filth are background noise ; the book alludes to the horrors of the camp without dwelling on them . The many characters and sub-plots of the book at times weave into complex and ingenious knots of suspense and drama , but Clavell isn't interested in calamity or resolution , so tensions are often smoothed over anti-climactically . Nothing much happens , and the pointlessness of prison life may be the point of the novel .
More interesting are the exploits of The King . Originally presented as a conniving anti-hero , the only prisoner with a clean shirt and fresh underwear in a world where hungry men pawn their wedding rings for extra food , The King's honorable , if twisted , nature is slowly revealed and developed . Also , we come to see that the other characters in the camp , pitiable though they are , are just as corrupt as The King . There's no one to like , so the reader is left siding with the one character he / she can understand . The camp MP , a Dudley Do-Right named Lieutenant Grey , is instantly vile as the vile camp tattletale , but ends up almost the hero of the book simply because his devotion to pointless rules and laws doesn't look so bad once everyone else's dirty secrets are known .
There were way too many people named Sergeant and Colonel in this novel . You'll need to put out a casting call for imaginary extras if , like me , you need to put faces to names when you read fiction .
This may be the only WWII novel in which all the major characters are in the armed forces , many of them die , and yet not a single shot gets fired ( okay , one bullet at the end , but it's incidental ) . People die from malaria , starvation , despair , snakebite , and suffocation in an outhouse ( ew ! ) The violence in this book is largely internal and muffled .
Note 1 : James Clavell was a British soldier who was captured and interned in Singapore's Changi POW camp for the final months of WWII . The Changi prison of his novel is far harsher than the real POW camp was , according to most survivors and historians . ( I'm sure the real Changi was no picnic , either . ) Clavell is honest enough to insist in the preface that the book is entirely fictional .
001 4 James Clavell is renowned for his works such as _ Shogun _ and _ Noble House _ . This darkly autobiographical novel was , so far as I am aware , his first literary work . It remains his best .
Clavell was a prisoner of the Japanese . He was held at the infamous Changi prison on the eastern end of Singapore island as described in the novel . Like the protagonist , Peter Marlowe , Clavell came from a good family , though due to his eyesight he was in the Royal Artillery , not the Royal Air Force ( a little harmless wish-fulfillment , there ) .
I think the novel impresses so many readers due to its stark simplicity and forthrightness , particularly in describing the moral dilemmas that confront Marlowe . With the issue of survival in the balance , does morality become relative ? Marlowe concludes that the only man who could answer his questions , his father , is dead - - killed on the Murmansk run . But just as Changi is rebirth for Marlowe , perhaps it is the King - - the trader with the Japanese - - who becomes Marlowe's father and answers those questions .
There are many , many layers to this book . I have read it many times and have always walked away with something new . As with the Changi experience , itself , I sense that there is never complete resolution .
Clavell died several years ago . I hope that he found peace .
Add this work to testaments like Iris Chang's , _ The Rape of Nanking _ , as a remembrance of what the Japanese did to the defeated .
002 4 Of all Clavell's books , this has always been my favorite . I will not deny that Clavell tends to use the same story and characters in every novel ( compare shogun with tai-pan and noble house ) . I love all his books ( even gai-jin which few seem to enjoy ) , but King Rat is the best . It really makes you think about human nature , and what's really important in life . All these people grew up in a certain lifestyle , and suddenly and thrown together in a POW camp , and under brutal circumstances . I have done research on POW camps at this time , and the findings are not pleasant , so it really is interesting to see how people change , and what they really value . Seeing as how Mr . Clavell spent time in Changi himself , all that we see in King Rat is an extension of that , and so you can really appreciate what he endured . It for these above reasons that I truly enjoyed this book above his other great novels , and why I have read several times over .
003 4 King Rat has many unique aspects amongst the other novels in the Asian saga :
- It was written first , with less connections to the rest of the series .
- It's the shortest of the lot .
- It's the most autobiographical , as Clavell spent time in that same prison .
- There is the least cross-cultural interaction .
Having said all of this , this WWII POW survival story is a compelling study of what people do to survive . In a sense , we all become rats , with one as king . Much of the book studies the manipulations between folks vying for power . There are the Americans trying to enforce prison standards . There are people living off of rank to hold a grasp of dignity . And then there is the King of the title , who finds a way to transcend above the problems , living off the black market and a network of informants .
We are introduced to the character that most closely resembles Clavell in this novel too . Though he reappears in Noble House , we first catch the author as the King's sidekick , a downed soldier who has to struggle with where his loyalties are .
I can not recommend the series enough . Whether you go through it chronologically as written , or in the order of time periods written about , you'll find this a deep addition to the series .
004 4 This is the only only book that written that in my opinion supplants Clavell's own Shogun as perhaps the best historical novel ever written .
Partly autobiographical , King Rat recounts the story of Phillip Marlowe , a character no doubt based on Clavell himself , and his years spent in the notorious Singapore POW camp known as Changi during WW2 .
What is so stunning about this novel , is that perhaps because of the very real life experiences that forged its narrative , it becomes more than mere words on paper , it becomes a very real world where the old class lines are broken down as officers and enlisted men sleep in the same mud huts , where getting an egg in your rice for dinner constitutes a great day , a transvestite becomes the sexual icon of the whole camp and the very concept of traditional ethics and morals are challenged .
What makes this novel so very magical is that the depth with which the characters and their respective personalities and fates resonate with the readers , their laughter becomes your laughter , their sorrow becomes your sorrow , their joy becomes your joy , very rarely is a novel simultaneously able to so superbly entertain and make you affect your outlook on life , after the end of this short novel you will feel as if you have emerged from three years in a Singapore prison camp , and like the men in this novel , you will never be the same again .
005 4 This book is lumped into the Asian Saga series of James Clavell , and yes , it takes place in Asia , but bears no other true resemblance to the rest of the saga . It's shorter , of course , but it's also not an epic . . . it takes place in a POW camp almost entirely .
The character of King , the American trader who lives high-on-the-hog through his wheeling and dealing , is fascinating in the feelings of hatred envy he generates . Everyone wants to be close to him , not because they like him , but because he can afford to give away cigarettes , share an egg , pour coffee , etc . He has learned to manipulate the system totally to look out for #1 .
He makes friends with unassuming British fighter pilot Peter Marlowe , who at first acts and translator and later as partner and friend to King . His character goes through lots of development , and he is really the conscious of the camp . Although not written in the first person , we really see things through his eyes .
The book is packed full of colorful characters , many sketched only briefly , yet Clavell makes us see them all , and understand them .
THere are moments of high drama , where our characters are close to being caught or captured , and the plot moves at a brisk pace .
I found the ending of the story to be just a tiny bit rushed , BUT it made some powerful statements . When the war ends , the fear that sweeps through the camp , first that the Japanese will take vengeance on the POWs and second , the fear of what do we do now , is very convincing . It's not what I ever thought the liberation of a POW camp would be like , and it really made me stop and think . And the dynamics that occur when the first officers from outside show up to help liberate the camp are fascinating .
This book is an exploration of the human spirit that is dramatic , moving , occasionally funny and always unexpected . HIGHLY RECOMMENDED ! !
006 4 James Clavell's King Rat is a poignant , resonating tale about humanity and struggle in incredibly dire situations - - namely , the World War II Japanese prison camp of Changi .
The bulk of the story , consisting of the life-and-death daily turmoil among the POWs , is deeply affecting and intriguing . Clavell writes concisely and powerfully . The brief descriptions and terse dialog amplify the emotion and passion of the story . It is not often that a book is truly hard to put down for me , but this was one of them . The pace of the book and the compassion I developed for the characters was such that I really didn't want to stop .
The ending left me profoundly melancholy - - not necessarily a bad thing . Clavell creates intense moral questions for the reader about honor , duty , loyalty , love , and a thousand other human emotions . As the war ends and the prisoners are faced with the somehow-terrorizing concept of returning to normal life , the reader comes to grips with what truly matters in life , the hope and faith of the POWs , and the joy of life in the face of death .
King Rat is a whirlwind of emotion and adventure . It will heighten your understanding of World War II history and leave you questioning . A grand tale .
007 4 Warning : this is a disturbing book . It is gripping and enthralling , but horrifying . It shows men being tested to the utmost , and the many bad qualities this brings out . But it also shows true friendship and cooperation against adversity .
Clavell truly brings to life a POW camp of Englishmen and Americans ( captives of the Japanese ) and the horrors they were subject to . Men help each other survive , but also betray each other , and are jealous of each other's success . The King , an American soldier , is especially envied because he is extremely skilled at trading and making deals . He and the Englishman Peter Marlowe are the main characters , but there are also stories of other men and how they survive .
The ending is perhaps the most frightening part of the whole book . The prisoners are freed at the end of WWII , and as they leave the camp , they must learn to be part of the world again , and not the world they created . I won't spoil anything more . For anyone who can handle its intensity , King Rat is an eye-opening read .
008 4 An American corporal manages to swindle and manipulate his way to being the King of a Japanese POW camp . The one thing that sets this aside from Clavell's three other novels that I have read , aside from being semi autobiographical is the protagonist . The King has a rascal like charm to him that makes the character highly readable and fun . He is the underdog . Plotting and conniving to make a buck and sticking it to his superiors and relishing it . A man in the right place at the right time . He befriends a British Lieutenant by the name of Marlowe ( A nice little nod to Joseph Conrad ) whose honor and integrity is arguably the the conflict in the book . Finally , on the opposite end of the spectrum , you have the dutiful yet pitful antagonist Lieutenant Grey . Who , while morally and lawfully in the right , alienates himself by taking himself too seriously . These three make for some great tension and are the main drive of the story .
I was pleasantly surprised to find that this was not an epic , despite this being his most personal story . However , Clavell fans will not be disappointed . The protagonist thinks two steps ahead of everyone else ( I would hate to play chess with the author ) and I would not be surprised if King's shrewdness was a precursor to Toranaga in Shogun . Any less qualified author would have made this story into glorified genre pulp . For those struggling for a visual reference , think Bridge on the River Kwai and Pappilon . A great read and highly recommended .
009 4 This , in my opinion , is the best of three books and movies about Japanese World War II prisoner of war camps . The others , also very good , are Bridge on the River Kwai and Empire of the Sun .
The theme is how men survive in the horrendous conditions of POW camps . Set in one of the worst camps , Changi , near Singapore , an American corporal , called The King , thrives . He is street-smart , unscrupulous , the most powerful man among the 10,000 prisoners , and somewhat appealing in his vulnerability . The King is also honest - - at least about himself - - and the only other honest person in the book is his antagonist , the wretched , diarrhea-ridden British cop , Grey , who is attempting to rise above his lower-class origins . Most of the other British officers in the book are revealed to be vicious hypocrites .
The King and his callow , worshipful friend , a British pilot named Marlowe , outsmart everyone . . . but then the war ends , and the real world begins again . This is a good tale on several levels : adventure , survival , an insider's look at a Japanese POW camp , and an examination of the differences between Brits and Americans . The movie rates five stars . The book is almost there .
010 4 Whether you are a fan of Clavell's Asian Saga or a casual reader , you will surely enjoy his first major book about prisoners of war at Changi in Sinapore during the Japanese occupation . Because Clavell himself spent time in the POW camp , he has a real perspective of what life was like in the camp . He is able to describe to the reader a sense of competitive community that the prisoners had amongst one another and that it seemed the Japanese hardly had a role at all . One enterprising character is able to make a great deal of money and garner a large amount of supplies at the envy of most others . The title itself has a cryptic meaning that only reading the book will dissolve . . . .
011 4 This is the great ass-whuppin ' that released James Clavell's literary chi-flow and allowed him to become the eternal master of intelligent historical potboilers . Never mind Umberto Eco's Seven Seas Jim high-cappin ' in Foucalt's Pendulum , James Clavell lays down some staggeringly beautiful historical yarns . And this , the one that came straight from his own horrifying experiences , is the one that started it all .
Where Remarque , Hasek , Grass , Vonnegut , Heller ( and the list goes on ) tell us the obvious truth that war sucks , Clavell fell into the ninth circle that the others were lucky enough to avoid . And he emerged with one novel that will make you sick even while you enjoy the heck out of it .
King Rat , while short and spare , is truly the prerequisite to Shogun , Tai Pan , and all his other novels . That every subsequent novel makes peace with his one-time tormentors is even more extraordinary .
012 4 There we go again , after Shogun this is my second book by clavell . The best thing about the book is that the author did not try to justify the war . Japs were not the villains . Its was something bigger . . . . situations . . . the situation , time was the biggest enemy . Just how mean people can get when the find themselves in bad situations . it is quiet true people can actually forget that they are fighting for the good side when it comes to saving their lifes .
Mr clavel who actually went through all this , has written the book with an emotion ( cant tell axactly is it anger or nostalgia )
The book is a must read for every book lover
013 4 When I started to read King Rat I was not sure what to expect . I was hoping for a cross between Bridge on the River Kwai and The Great Escape . Well I was kind of right on both counts .
King Rat is an authentic novel written from Clavell's past experiences in a Japanese prison camp during the war .
In a nutshell , we have an American , called The King who , back in America was as plain as dirt and who came from humble beginnings . Well ironically , while in Prison , his rough upbringing was just the thing that made him a survivor / local hero among the other enlisted men , yet among the educated British officers he was a trouble maker who wouldn't conform to the rules of the prison . To the Rat prison was the best thing that ever happened to him .
Clavell , spent very little time on the Japanese . This novel dealt mainly with the interactions of the prisoners .
Rather that a prison / war novel I felt this was more or less a character study of class systems . King Rat illustrates to us that a down and out loser from America who couldn't get arrested before the war , can become the most important and cunning survivor during the war . Because , when it is the comes down to it , this is the rule of the jungle , dog eat dog . Just like the actual rat , we loathe them , we try to kill as many as we can , yet we can never seem to kill them all , because a rat is a survivor and can adapt to its surroundings . So in short , the Rat was King in this jungle .
Fine novel , I recommend it .
014 4 This book is Clavells finest book , King Rat is one the finest views into a Prisoner of War . This book conveys the inner feelings of the two main characters the King and Peter Marlowe . The setting of the Changai prison camp is disturbly real , and treatment harrowing . This book is lavishly written and fast paced , filled with only the necessary description .
015 4 As many have noted , King Rat is based on Clavell's own experiences at the dreaded Changi POW camp in Singapore during WWII .
Filled with unforgettable scenes and characters , and tightly written , this book grabs you on the first page and never lets go .
There are numerous set pieces - - the poker game , the rat farm , the diamond sale , the camp liberation , I could go on .
Add to this a powerful tale of morality amid immoral conditions , and a search for what it means to be a man amid inhumane surroundings , and you have a tremendous story that is brilliantly told .
Highly recommended .
016 4 This is a brilliant work . I was fully vested in each and every character . Whether or not you like the populace of this prison camp , if you sympathize with the honest or the desperate , you will care about the men portrayed in this effort . Even the Japanese guards are well rendered and have substance . Read it !
017 4 The setting is a Japanese POW camp near Singapore in early 1945 . After years of Japanese neglect ,
near starvation diets , tropical diseases , and increasing hopelessness of liberation , British ,
Australian , and American prisoners are dropping like flies . A young and idealistic British pilot ,
Peter Marlowe , forms an unlikely friendship with a clever , street-smart enlisted American , ' the
King ' . While all the prisoners are literally walking skeletons suffering from every disease the
tropics have to offer , the King inexplicably manages to eat , live , and dress normally . The King's
secret ? Trading .
However , in Changi trading is a zero-sum gain and absolutely forbidden . ( In this strange world , the
commanding British officers strictly enforce Japanese orders against their fellow inmates . ) For one
prisoner to eat , another will go hungry ( ier ) . And the King is the master at not going hungry -
looking out for No . 1 . The king even outtrades his captors . Life is comparatively sweet for the
King , albeit lonely . After all , the entire camp burns with covetous envy regarding the King .
Nearly , everyone depends on the King , though , to make a life-saving trade - a watch for a bowl of
rice , $20 for an orange , etc . The King decides to take the unaffected Marlowe under his wing as a
sort of junior partner .
Marlowe is decidedly fascinated by this dynamic man ( without a conscience ? ) . And the King , in turn ,
remains mystified by Marlowe's idealism and self-sacrifice . The King lets Marlowe in on his
adventures and his secrets , something the whole camp would like to know , too . The ever imaginative
King comes up with a brilliant scheme to both make money AND get revenge on his camp enemies . And
this perverted world comes to a surrealistic end with the closing of the Pacific War . Though some
survive Changi , the experience will haunt the survivors for the rest of their lives . The question is
who will survive .
This is an outstanding book , which I read in the space of two days , barely able to put the book down .
Clavell's book - based on his actual imprisonment in Changi - describes the truly surrealistic world
of an actual Japanese POW camp and the men within it . However , it is strictly a fictional account -
only 2% of the prisoners held in Changi died according to the Australian War Memorial's Creation of Changi Prison Museum article by Kevin Blackburn .
018 4 We should be really grateful for the strike that prevented Clavell to work as a screenplay writer and director for a few weeks in the early sixties and led them to write his first novel . In this edition there is a nice prologue by his daughter explaining what prompted him to write this book , and how quickly he wrote it . The novel is a fictionalized retelling of Clavell's experiences in a Japanese prisoner of war camp in Singapore .
Clavell does an amazing job in describing the personalities of the different characters that take part in the story . The fact that the camp held American , English and Australian prisoners provided him with the opportunity to showcase his acute understanding of the different cultures . If you add on top of that the Japanese and the locals that were in charge of managing the camp , you will find a wealth of characters that make this a mesmerizing read . There are two characters though , that are at the center of this tale , and whose actions could serve as a study in sociology . One is an American , the King , who is a corporal that has the ability to facilitate commerce , which is prohibited by camp rules , and therefore makes a very nice living , especially when compared with everyone else . When the King meets Peter Marlowe , a British Lieutenant , the contrast of personalities and moral codes could not be clearer . Thus starts an unusual friendship that will test Marlowe's character and convictions , since he will have to decide between compromising his morals in return for better living conditions for him and his friends , and sticking to his guns and keep on living miserably .
One thing that you can tell as soon as you start reading this novel , and that is confirmed later , is that Clavell is an excellent narrator and has a gift for describing characters and give them a soul . This helps understand how he can hold the reader's attention without it wavering in lengthy novels like
Shogun
. In this case , the parts that deal with the secret commerce help provide the story with variety , because they speed up the pace and change the tone . It is also interesting that this edition includes the passages related to the situation of those left behind , mainly wives and kids . These provide additional insights into the lives of the prisoners , helping us understand their motivations and behavior better .
In summary , this can only be defined as an excellent read . Although it has some scenes that may be hard on some readers for their brutality , I believe that the great majority of people will love it .
019 4 Circa 1962 Clavell astounds the reader with his insight to the human condition . From the beginning until the end , King Rat never ceases to surprise and evoke the dark humor concurrent withthe grim reality of terrible circumstances . I remember seeing this book in countless rucks during Viet Nam , read and re-read , taped together , dog eared and in heavily stressed condition then , passed along .
020 4 This is my first review so bear with me . This book reminded me a lot of Catch - 22 by Heller because of the wartime scene and its cast of characters . Though King Rat is not that humorous , Clavell still wrote a fascinating story .
His style so easily reveals the key characters and what they're all about . Learning about King and Marlowe and Grey - early in the book , you know everything you need to know about them . The key is the dynamics between them - the interaction between them . I enjoyed every conversation between Marlowe and the King because I as the reader could feel the electricity .
As it happens with any good story , you get so immersed in their ( prisoners ' ) situation , that you suddenly realize how much your view has changed throughout the story . That is good writing .
I tried hard to read Clavell's Shogun - heck I went traveling to another country and still couldn't finish it - it's too long - it was a great epic but I needed answers or conclusions . King Rat is much shorter and as powerful .
One other mention - the version I bought included 5 or 6 sets of 10 - 15 pages that discussed what happened to a few of the wives of the prisoners . You can buy either version - the story of the wives ' is interesting and touching , but you're not going to get your sappy Hollywood ending in this one so it doesn't add to the story much .
021 4 Actually , I rate this an 11 . This was the first , and the fifth , and the last Clavell novel that I have read ( yes , I read it three times ) . Clavell even coproduced an excellent movie adaptation in the late 60 ' s ( though filmed purposely in black and white ) which captured the entire mood of the book . The reason that this book works so well is that Clavell himself lived the story . The character of Peter Marlowe is based on Clavell himself , and it shows .
This book is a brutal , depressing display of humanity at its basest . Not for the light hearted , but a must for anyone interested in WWII or in Asia .
022 4 First of all this is the first book I have read by James Clavell and I really enjoyed it . Some of my first thoughts were that the prison was not quite as horrible as I expected , but that is where Clavell did a good job allowing us to see the prison through the eyes of the prisoners . This was a really drmactic page turner for the specific reasons that there are so many levels of plot development and happenings .
The two main characters are a British air officer named Marlowe and an American named the King . This book is of course about the psyche and human nature of survival in the face of insurmountable odds . When you read through the book you will think King is not so bad and doing what it takes to survive . By the end you will see the results of his behaviors , actions , and results . The last few pages are poetic and intense . I have read a lot of novels , and this one in my opinion is up there with the classics . Also King Rat could be read by people with all kinds of varying interests and enjoy it !
023 4 As others have noted , this is James Clavell's first novel and definitely the most difficult for him to write . It deals with the Changi POW camp that Clavell himself was imprisoned in during the latter stages of the Second World War . Clavell's pain of having to revisit the very harsh memories of Changi will leave most readers with a better understanding of human sacrifice and survival .
Although part of the Asian saga , King Rat can stand alone as an excellent WW2 memoir . Highly recommended !
024 4 This book , like all of Clavell's historical fiction , pulled me in within the first five pages . The gripping story of life within a WW2 POW camp is disturbing , enlightening and dramatic all at once . The story centers around two characters and their reactions to the horror around them . As we get deeper into their lives we begin to get a picture of why life is worth living and the way that it should be lived . The ending of the book is much more telling than the end of most of Clavell's books and does a fine job of summarizing the book's overall purpose . By far , this is the best book that I have ever read by Clavell .
025 4 I read this book in a long London-Toronto flight . I just could not put it off .
James Clavell continues to exercise its magic by creating a captivating universe that make us dream about the relative value of things . How much would you pay for a rat leg ?
We follow the king in its daily rulings and dealings with its subjects , all prisonners of war in a Japanese camp during WWII . How can a corporal rule a camp and its general . How can cunning and ruthlessness elevate a man on a throne . This is a very strange american dream that is depicted in this novel .
All rights reserved to The Reviewer Provided by courtesy to Amazon.com
026 4 King Rat serves up a tale of advantage and envy in a less than desirable enviroment , the Changi prison . Changi prison becomes a microcosm of human nature and how base it can really sink when all the comforts and luxuries that so many take for granted are stripped away . A vicious Darwinism takes over as those who can survive and those who can't barely exist or worse . Is the Rat wrong to make himself ( his cohorts to a lesser extent ) as comfortable as possible during his stay in Changi ? That is the question the reader has to ask themselves after reading this novel . Some of the King Rat characters are referenced further in Clavell's chronicle of the Straun family Asian business intrigue , Noble House .
027 4 All right , so King Rat's a thriller , used bookstore fodder for thirteen year olds . It's still one of the best in the genre , with great characterizations and an ending that puts to shame most of today's profound bestsellers . King Rat differs in its psychological , internal approach to the POWs trapped inside the a Japanese camp in Singapore . Buy it for the thrills , but read it for the emotion .
028 4 Well . . . I really despise reading . I hate it with a passion . There has never been a time when I decide to just pick up a book for a good time , I usually won't even consider that in my plans . However , a few summers ago I picked up King Rat . And I picked it up again a few weeks later . I lost it , but bought it last summer . I finished it in a weekend because I just couldn't put it down . I read it again a couple weeks ago . Every time you finish that book , something just comes over you , I swear it . It's the most amazing book I have ever , or will ever read in my entire life . Now that that's done , I can go paint my nails .
030 4 This review is from :
King Rat ( Kindle Edition )
Book is about World War II.Prison in Singapore , officers and soldiers , relationships , tragedy they all must go through .
Very tens and brutal story .
031 4 Book is about World War II.Prison in Singapore , officers and soldiers , relationships , tragedy they all must go through .
Very tens and brutal story .
032 4 King Rat is historically accurate and emotionally compelling . I can truly tell that this book comes from the heart of an Australian P.O.W .
033 4 This review is from :
King Rat ( Kindle Edition )
Just finished Kindle version of King Rat , by James Clavell .
This book is the product of a bad OCR-scan to make it Kindle-ready .
- Quotation marks are often backwards , particularly in double-quotations .
- The elipses character ( . . . ) which is used often in this book , is translated as an ampersand ( & ) .
- Good luck with anything italicized . I sometimes had to track down the paperback version to figure it out .
These typos are prevalent and knocked a full star off my review .
A scheming , hustling American Army corporal known as The King befriends an upper-crust Royal Air Force leftennant in a Japanese WWII POW camp . Both men adhere to well-developed , but radically different , codes of honor , and the novel is an exploration of their unlikely friendship and struggle to remain men ( by their definitions ) against the corrupting desolation of the prison . The matter-of-fact tone of King Rat pegs it as a 1960s paperback . Brutality and filth are background noise ; the book alludes to the horrors of the camp without dwelling on them . The many characters and sub-plots of the book at times weave into complex and ingenious knots of suspense and drama , but Clavell isn't interested in calamity or resolution , so tensions are often smoothed over anti-climactically . Nothing much happens , and the pointlessness of prison life may be the point of the novel .
More interesting are the exploits of The King . Originally presented as a conniving anti-hero , the only prisoner with a clean shirt and fresh underwear in a world where hungry men pawn their wedding rings for extra food , The King's honorable , if twisted , nature is slowly revealed and developed . Also , we come to see that the other characters in the camp , pitiable though they are , are just as corrupt as The King . There's no one to like , so the reader is left siding with the one character he / she can understand . The camp MP , a Dudley Do-Right named Lieutenant Grey , is instantly vile as the vile camp tattletale , but ends up almost the hero of the book simply because his devotion to pointless rules and laws doesn't look so bad once everyone else's dirty secrets are known .
There were way too many people named Sergeant and Colonel in this novel . You'll need to put out a casting call for imaginary extras if , like me , you need to put faces to names when you read fiction .
This may be the only WWII novel in which all the major characters are in the armed forces , many of them die , and yet not a single shot gets fired ( okay , one bullet at the end , but it's incidental ) . People die from malaria , starvation , despair , snakebite , and suffocation in an outhouse ( ew ! ) The violence in this book is largely internal and muffled .
Note 1 : James Clavell was a British soldier who was captured and interned in Singapore's Changi POW camp for the final months of WWII . The Changi prison of his novel is far harsher than the real POW camp was , according to most survivors and historians . ( I'm sure the real Changi was no picnic , either . ) Clavell is honest enough to insist in the preface that the book is entirely fictional .
034 4 Just finished Kindle version of King Rat , by James Clavell .
This book is the product of a bad OCR-scan to make it Kindle-ready .
- Quotation marks are often backwards , particularly in double-quotations .
- The elipses character ( . . . ) which is used often in this book , is translated as an ampersand ( & ) .
- Good luck with anything italicized . I sometimes had to track down the paperback version to figure it out .
These typos are prevalent and knocked a full star off my review .
A scheming , hustling American Army corporal known as The King befriends an upper-crust Royal Air Force leftennant in a Japanese WWII POW camp . Both men adhere to well-developed , but radically different , codes of honor , and the novel is an exploration of their unlikely friendship and struggle to remain men ( by their definitions ) against the corrupting desolation of the prison . The matter-of-fact tone of King Rat pegs it as a 1960s paperback . Brutality and filth are background noise ; the book alludes to the horrors of the camp without dwelling on them . The many characters and sub-plots of the book at times weave into complex and ingenious knots of suspense and drama , but Clavell isn't interested in calamity or resolution , so tensions are often smoothed over anti-climactically . Nothing much happens , and the pointlessness of prison life may be the point of the novel .
More interesting are the exploits of The King . Originally presented as a conniving anti-hero , the only prisoner with a clean shirt and fresh underwear in a world where hungry men pawn their wedding rings for extra food , The King's honorable , if twisted , nature is slowly revealed and developed . Also , we come to see that the other characters in the camp , pitiable though they are , are just as corrupt as The King . There's no one to like , so the reader is left siding with the one character he / she can understand . The camp MP , a Dudley Do-Right named Lieutenant Grey , is instantly vile as the vile camp tattletale , but ends up almost the hero of the book simply because his devotion to pointless rules and laws doesn't look so bad once everyone else's dirty secrets are known .
There were way too many people named Sergeant and Colonel in this novel . You'll need to put out a casting call for imaginary extras if , like me , you need to put faces to names when you read fiction .
This may be the only WWII novel in which all the major characters are in the armed forces , many of them die , and yet not a single shot gets fired ( okay , one bullet at the end , but it's incidental ) . People die from malaria , starvation , despair , snakebite , and suffocation in an outhouse ( ew ! ) The violence in this book is largely internal and muffled .
Note 1 : James Clavell was a British soldier who was captured and interned in Singapore's Changi POW camp for the final months of WWII . The Changi prison of his novel is far harsher than the real POW camp was , according to most survivors and historians . ( I'm sure the real Changi was no picnic , either . ) Clavell is honest enough to insist in the preface that the book is entirely fictional .
035 4 The story takes place in a Japanese POW camp during WWII and follows a group of POWs as they
try to survive life in the camp . As the story unfolds and the characters interact the reader
will see the story as a study in human nature - how people act , interact and think in a stressful ,
life threatening environment .
The story is very good , suspensful and interesting .
036 4 This review is from :
King Rat ( Paperback )
After living in Singapore for seven years , I read a lot on the war in the pacific .
This is one of my favorites . Though fictional , it captured what I saw and read about the Japanese occupation .
Clavel is the one of the best .
037 4 After living in Singapore for seven years , I read a lot on the war in the pacific .
This is one of my favorites . Though fictional , it captured what I saw and read about the Japanese occupation .
Clavel is the one of the best .
038 4 I found this to be a very entertaining and insightful book . That the author lived through the experience is clear as one reads . Although some of the subplots died off with no explanation and the ending was a bit anticlimactic , overall it kept me turning the pages and I finished it in two days . Some of the dialogue remains with me to this day like from a dying man : ( paraphrasing here ) From nothing and into nothing with 22 years in-between , seems kind of pointless doesn't it ? I recommend this book as one any fan of WWII fiction should read .
039 4 Start with Shogun by Clavell and work up to Gai-Jin , Noble House , King Rat and the rest of the Asian saga . They are tremendous and educational
040 4 This review is from :
King Rat ( Mass Market Paperback )
Overall ( with the exception of the ending ) this book was a solid five stars and is second only to Shogun in my opinion . There are so many things going on in this book , and I could not stop turning the page .
The ending on the other hand was extremely anticlimactic - hence my four-star . Sofar I have read the first four books in the Asian Saga including King Rat , and all of these books have an ending that falls flat . I was so angry when I read about what happened to the King . His sudden change in status is never really explained , and only if Clavell had made all of his endings good ( Shogun was the only one with a halfway decent ending ) , then this series would inch its way over to a five-star rating .
041 4 Overall ( with the exception of the ending ) this book was a solid five stars and is second only to Shogun in my opinion . There are so many things going on in this book , and I could not stop turning the page .
The ending on the other hand was extremely anticlimactic - hence my four-star . Sofar I have read the first four books in the Asian Saga including King Rat , and all of these books have an ending that falls flat . I was so angry when I read about what happened to the King . His sudden change in status is never really explained , and only if Clavell had made all of his endings good ( Shogun was the only one with a halfway decent ending ) , then this series would inch its way over to a five-star rating .
042 4 This book King Rat , is one of the best genre fiction books you could ever come across . The detail of the plot is just so unexpected . All this happened in a miserable military concentration camp ( which is what it was in Changi during ww 2 ) It is fresh and well written and psychologically real as if it was written recently and yet the book itself is older than the Beatles . There are at least 5 astoundingly original characters in this book as well as the usual corruptable military types .
Corporal King ( King Rat ) is one of the less astounding but is completely believable as a street wise American who benefits from the moral shambles aroung him .
The author , the late James Clavell-an Englisman - was imprisoned in Changi by the Japanese , himself as a young Captain .
It is beautifully written within the tough prisoner genre that the book belongs to .
If you like WW 2 stories about near triumphs and near misses over moral corruption you will really admire this classic book .
043 4 Everyone should have a copy of this book . In a POW camp during WWII , the stars and titles don't really matter much . The low ranking soldier becomes the most powerful with his natural cleverness and slick dealings . In the most horrible living conditions , he is the King ! This book has a very deep meaning about human nature and the dignity one gives up for an extra food ration or a cigarette . But , for the King , what happens when the war is over ?
044 4 Over the years I have reread this one several times and continue to be fastinated with this particular work . I , myself , feel this has gained classic status and eventhough I hate the term a must read , but certainly feel this book falls into that category . The work graphically shows just what people will do when faced with circumstances completely out of their control . Recommend this read for any serious student of literature , history , miliary or otherwise , or psychology as well as those simply looking for a very good read .
045 4 An amazing story , so vivid it seems like Mr . Clavell transcribed a true story . Very real , thought-provoking . This is my first Clavell novel ( although I did watch all of Shogun on DVD ) and have to say I'll be reading more of his in the near future .
I liked the texture , the rawness of it all . A story of poor , helpless prisoners who create their own little ' society ' if you will , in this war camp in South East Asia . Imagine having to eke it out in those conditions .
Overall , this book kept me glued and it hasn't aged a day . . .
046 4 king rat was set in changi , singapore . . it's a breath taking novel by james clavell . . its my first clavell's novel and already it has left an amazing impression for me . . it focuses on our life and what we have to do to live by using your brain . . it shows the inner character of human beings . . how human beings react when they have nothing and they even eat dog's meat to fulfill their hunger . . its a bit funny too . . the book shows the king's brainstorm and how he survived and how he was fit and fine ithe camp while everybody was in a miserable condition . . it doesnt matter how you achieve ur goal or how you get the things u wanted . . but what matter is that you've got it . . .
its a fantastic book and it reflects the miserable POW camp during the second world war
047 4 Writing about a POW camp during WWII , where British , American and Australian soldiers were kept for several years by the Japanese - in the infamous Changi prison near Singapore - is a daunting topic . After all , it is rather depressing and there is not that much of a plot . Clavell does very well at describing the inhuman situtation and how some - the king Rat - of the title do better than others in this kind of circumstances . The prison world dehumanizes most of them , Peter Marlowe , is one the exceptions holding on to his upper class principles as much as can be expected under these circumstance . There is a lot about the relationship of the different classes in Englands and the lack of that in the USA . There is sort of a happy ending when most of the principal characters hang on their lives until their liberated with the end of the war .
At the same time this looks like the downfall of the admired King Rat of the title , who when stripped of his power , has no friend left and dows nt seem to look forward to going back to freedom after the powerful postion he had enjoyed in the camp .
It is powerful book and especially the ending makes it a book hard to forget . It does not have the wide range of other Clavell novels but it makes up for this by creating the claustrophobic world that was Changi . Quite recommendable .
048 4 In my honest opinion , this was one of the best books I have ever read . Its unique setting , plot , and characters make for an unforgettable read . The emotional roller coaster that King Rat takes you through is phenomenal . One minute , you could feel dire hatred toward the King because of his treatment of his fellow POWs . The next , you could be laughing hysterically due to the idea of Colonel Smedly-Taylor paying top dollar for rat legs . After that , you would be feeling sorrow and pity toward the King . No book I have read before has left such a lasting impression on me . After I was finished , I almost wished I were just beginning it so I could experience the ride all over again . I highly recommend it for anyone who wants a thoughtful , impacting story . James Clavell will forever hold a fond place in my heart .
049 4 This is the first book that I've read by James Clavell and I'll have to say I will most likely be reading more of them . I chose to read this book as a history assignment and it is perfectly historically accurate . It shows the struggles POWs went through where tobacco is such a prized possession men stoop as low as to pick others used tobacco from the ground . The plot line is slow to realize but becomes more evident as the book becomes harder to read ( pages 150 on ) . Overall the book really makes us feel for the people that fought for us in WW2 .
050 4 This is a truly great book . James Clavell is a master of making his audience feel as if they are immersed in the story . The relationships between people when they are placed in a desperate situation ( in this case a WWII POW camp ) is facinating . There is a deep insight into the main characters that isn't found in most books .
This book is terrific and if you can't handle some of his larger books this is a great way to become acquainted with is writing . This is one of my favorite books of all time . I've read it more times than I can recall .
052 4 I rated this book as high as book godfather and brave new world !
053 4 I read this book in grade 10 , and I still love it . There isn't much to say about it except that the ending is so amazing . I know lots of people find the end inadequate , but that's because they missed the whole point of the book . I would quote the end paragraph here , but I don't have the book in front of me .
054 4 James Clavell has drawn upon his personal experiences of a WW II POW camp to write this novel . And what a novel it is . . . I could not put the book down . I highly recommend the exciting adventures of The King and his entourage !
055 4 I had to read this book because one of my students put it on his English reading list and I am glad he did so . Apart from it being a fast-paced , well-written account of POW's in Asian war camps it also provides me , as a teacher , with a great hang-up for discussing differences between American and English culture ( Peter Marlowe and the King ) ( compulsory subject to be dealt with in the Dutch English class )
056 4 I read this book for my Honors English class in the 9th grade , and it is still , after all these years , one of my favorite books . There is no way to capture the feelings you read while reading this novel in such a short review space , but trust me , read the novel . It is powerful , well written , and extremely intelligent .
058 4 King Rat , tied with Shogun , is the best of Clavell's Asian Saga . He incorporated , and illustrated the very core of what it is to be a man . What makes this book an instant classic , is the simple , yet horrific , setting . Also , Clavell was able to fill each page with such meaning , he didn't have to make a several-hundred-page-behemoth of a book in order to digest the meaning within it . Compelling was the depth that a man falls to in such a desolate existance , and the measures required to lift a man up to some degree of dignity . For his ability to depict the strength of charicter of this western man in asia , Clavell has earned a place of honor among the great novellest of our time .
060 4 The book is deeply moving and thought provoking . What is really important in life ? How would I develop or handle such circumstances if put to reality ? What is moral or not and where is the fine line between survival and death ? All of these questions are posed by Clavell . . . What a masterful portrayal ! Clavell is such an outstanding writer ! Sho-gun was my first read . . This one is a classic also ! ! Recommended .
061 4 This is another fabulous work by James Clavell , a stand-out in his collection . Even though the book was set in a prison camp , all I thought about was that I wanted to be ' The King ' . A rivetting story of life and death , friendship and betrayal . Shorter than his other works , but equally valuable .
063 4 King Rat is set in a Japanese prisoner camp in World War II . Most of the novel deals with the interactions among the prisoners ( who are British , Australian , American , etc . ) and between the prisoners and the guards . The main theme is whether or not each prisoner is morally required to help the other prisoners , or whether in this setting it's every man for himself . The main character is someone who took every possible advantage for himself at the expense of the other prisoners . He becomes the most powerful force in the camp , but he has to sacrifice his humanity to do so . I found this book to be well written and thought provoking ; I would recommend it to anyone but especially to anyone contemplating military service .
064 4 Clavell is the best story teller of the twentieth century . His works are accurate , compelling , and timeless . An hour with this book King Rat goes by like a second . I have read Shogun , while much longer , it is also impossible to put down . Buy this book now .
065 4 After reading Tai-Pan , I obviously wanted more of the same . This is exactly what King Rat is . It takes place in a very different time and surroundings , but you know you're reading James Clavelle . The beloved character descriptions , the adoration of the hero ( Tai-Pan in Tai-Pan and the King in King Rat ) , the great plot and events , etc . Great book !
066 4 Although there is nothing patently wrong with King Rat , it is my least favorite of the first three books in Clavell's Asian Saga . The novel takes place entirely within a POW camp run by the Japanese in Singapore . The plot is engaging and I spent a couple of days eagerly flipping pages until the end , but I didn't get the sense that I had learned anything about Singapore the way that I felt I had learned about Japan and Hong Kong from reading Shogun and Taipan . In the book's defense , it is an excellent account of life in a POW camp and the ends to which people will go to survive in them , but I am hoping that King Rat is not a harbinger of things to come for the remaining books in the series .
068 4 It may take time to read . But its writing will put you where the charater is . James works still lives to this day . It is amazing ! The story of how one man controls a prison , how a man is pitted by his wits to his what he can take phsycaly . If you like lititure books , then James Clavell is the best at his books . Try it out . And try out Shogun !
069 4 I borrowed this book from my grandfather , and I was amazed . Such an intricate , fascinating story of of human mental survival . It's incredible how some , when put in a certain situation , die easily , while others have what it takes mentally to survive . It is an excellent book and of all of James Clavell's , this is my favorite .
070 4 This is a magnificent book . It details the horrors of war and the inhumane conditions POWs were forced to face , but it also is a carefully crafted tale of friendship , and how people can thrive in the most unlikely places . I disagree with the reviewer who thinks it is a depressing book - it is a novel of the human spirit , with a dash of good old capitalism thrown in for good measure .
Again , it is a wonderful book . It will stay with you for a long time .
071 4 I'll be honest , this is a depressing book . But it is about a depressing subject . This is a semi-autobiographical look at the author's internment in one of the Japanese's POW camps , Changi . It is a statement on the ingenuity and cunning of mankind , but also of its brutality . If you're looking for a quick , solid read , this is it .
072 4 This was one of the best books I have ever read . . . Easily , easily the best book by this author
073 4 Once again James Clavell has exceeded my expectations and written a real gem . The characters and scenery are so richly described that I felt I was in the camp with these unfortunate men . I would encourage anyone to take the time to read this book . . . and then , go back and read the rest of his novels .
074 4 The way that James Clavell compared humans to rats at the end of the book . It really showed how humans can revert to their basic instinct when it is nessesary .
075 4 If I think of World War II I think of King Rat - a novel of suffering and misery , but also a novel of man's triumph over insurmountable odds , and how life can be good when it really shouldn't be . It is both graphic and wittty , poignant and savage , and it leaves you wishing there was more to the story than you are given . But then that's war isn't it - many of these men lived their lives together and then went home to different lives . It is a great book - read it .
076 4 I read this book in my 9th grade honors english class ( like the person above me ) . It is so amazingly dope . It's hard to explain the amazing feeling you get after reading it . you should read it . um , okay .
077 4 this book is surely one of the best . its meaning is crystal clear : in life better strong than weak . the fact is that the king doesn't steal food or money like those weak officers , he just buys low ans sells high . what clavell wants to say to us is that making money out of other people's stupidity is much better than being stupid .
078 4 For those of you who might think that a Clavell novel might be a little too long for you , this book is great , and the shortest of the six books in the Asian Saga . Plus it stands out in its own right as a book that will leave an impression on you . Emotionally , and as a result of reading a good book
079 4 This is an excellent book , and of the Clavell books I have read ( all except Gai-Jin ) , this has the most interesting , if not the best , ending . It seemed to me that Clavell got slightly redundant with the natural disaster ending , but he managed to avoid it in this book . I found that the way the story and the character's individual stories were resolved ( or rather unresolved ) fit perfectly with the insanity that would be occurring in a WWII prison camp . Oh yeah , the rest of the book is pretty cool , too
080 4 I loved it ! It showed how life was in a POW camp.It was a great story . It was humorous , and very original .
081 4 I read this novel for an oral presentation in my 10th grade honors english class . This was such a good book , in fact , that I produced a 15 minute presentation and earned a grade of an A + from a teacher that has NEVER given an A + in 30 years of teaching .
In his shortest Novel of the Asian series , Clavell fills every page with meaning . His contant references back to Christ build his every aspect of the setting . The last two pages of this novel are the best two pages of literature that I have ever seen in my 16 years on this earth . I have read and re-read them over 100 times ( honest ! ) . I recommend this book to all audiences , but especially to those who want a book with heavy information .
And Adam ruled , for he was the King . Until the day his will to be King deserted him . Then he died , food for a stronger . And the strongest ' was always the King , not by strength alone , but King by cunning and luck and strength together . Among the rats ( 352 ) .
082 4 This book is so incredibly packed with info , and it is only 478 pages . It was fantastic , moving , and well-written . It is said an authos best books are autobiographical , and this holds true here . Clavell was in a Japenese prison camp , and the charector of Marlowe is based on him . ( that is made more clear in Noble House ) Anyway , enjoy
083 4 Great book ! Compared to Clavell's other works , this is a short book , although most of his works read very well . Also , King Rat has a great ending that really sums up the meaning of the entire book , as opposed to Shogun , which was a great book , but didn't really leave the reader with one lasting lesson .
084 4 With family recently traveling to Hong Kong this series by James Clavell , was the perfect gift ! ! Amazon delivered on time and in perfect condition ! !
085 4 King Rat is a fairly accurate depiticion of life in a Japanese POW camp . He glosses over the harsher points of camp life , but leaves enough to give a good pitcure .
086 4 I hadn't read anything of Clavell's before King Rat , so I came to him fresh and with no preconceived notions . I enjoyed this book , but found the ending somewhat unsatisfying .
Still , I would recommend King Rat for its apparently realistic view of the horrors of a POW camp and the lengths to which the human spirit will go to survive . The main character IS an interesting fellow .
087 4 This is my first James Clavell novel . In a nutshell , it is a Japanese version of Stalag 17 . It is the story of American , British , and Australian POW's at Changi prison camp . A place where the real world is turned completely upside down . In addition to being prisoners , the POW's find their ranks are meaningless . Devoid of societal / military rules the strong survive . #1 is the King , an American corporal who runs the prison camp from the inside .
The King effectively manipulates everyone in the camp from Colonels on down , through his payroll system . If you want money , eggs , cigarettes , medicine , you have to see the King . If you want to sell something , everyone knows you go through the King .
Suspense is derived from the near misses of getting caught by the Japanese or the pip-squeak MP , Captain Grey . Grey's sole motivation is catching the King breaking the rules . Much of the action is seen through the eyes of Peter Marlowe , an affable English lieutenant to whom the King takes a liking due to his command of the local language and it's value to the King in trading and conversing with the guards .
The King teeters on the edge of good and evil throughout the book , never completely falling off the fence to either side . Under the circumstances , the reader tends to forgive the King's business dealings over this lack of compassion for the suffering around him . But when the suffering befalls Marlowe , the King reacts as a true friend and saves Marlowe's arm from amputation .
The finale is somewhat ambiguous and anticlimactic . The man who was once on top , the King , is reduced to a lowly corporal again and the many officers and outranking enlisted men are quick to see the King put back into his place when they are rescued and order is restored .
The books is adequate at best as there are no major conflicts or plot twists . But it is one of the few books telling the story of a Japanese POW camp .
088 4 I read this when I was 15 , so I don't know if it was ' deep ' or anything , but I can say I enjoyed it quite a bit .
089 4 After Shogun one would expect much better . Compared with Shogun , King Rat is rather 2D . The plot is not as engrossing . I think readers will have a difficult time getting into the story . The ending is somewhat predictable ( what do YOU think happens to all the prisoners ? ) and there are many things that are never explained ( who is the informant that knew about the radio ? ) . On the whole an entertaining book , but it moves slowly and doesnt go anywhere ( how exciting can life in a prison be anyway ? : P )
090 4 I really enjoyed the first 100 pages of King Rat and expected good things from the remaining chapters . But the novel goes downhill as the reader is forced to learn more about Peter Marlowe , a character I suspect we're supposed to admire for his complexity . The dialogue between prisoners is forced and the sub-plots are only of marginal interest . I found myself skimming the final third of the novel , as concentrating on it was much too painful .
With a 4 and 1 / 2 star rating , a prospective reader would think they were buying The Brothers Karamazov . Same goes for all of the books on Amazon that suffer from ' grade inflation ' . With every novel commanding 4 or more stars , what's left to differentiate the great novels ?
091 4 I'd heard such good things about this book , and couldn't wait to read it . Unfortunately , I found it really slow . I read the paperback version , and to be honest , I couldn't bring myself to finish the book . Major disappointment .
092 4 James Clavell's King Rat is hands down the worst of his Asian saga . Only related to the other four by the main character's possession of a gold ring , signet of the Clan Gordon ( italics ) mentioned once on the seventh page . Any reader of Clavell would expect this to have some significance later but the thread never reemerges . Did the author forget about it , carried away by his clearly sophmoric adulation of his Hero ? Or did he toss it in at his publisher's request in order to somehow justify this waste of print by weakly connecting it to his better works . And what is this shiftless down-and-out motherless drunkard's son doing with such a treasure anyway ? Surely that would have made a more interesting book . Of course , the matural answer is that Clavell is telling his own story , what he lived through as a POW . He has , however , forgotten the first rule of freshman exposition : Just because it happened to you , doesn't make it interesting . Certainly , there are traces of the Clavell magic - - despite his always hackneyed prose , he is a master storyteller , but in this case the threads lead nowhere and peter out where a quick death would be more merciful . A large theme is built up around a secret radio , but when discovered not once but twice the Japanese commander who has been built up as a terrifying menace offers cigarettes to all involved . None are tortured , jailed or even questioned . It is as if he is uncertain as to whether he wants to write The Gulag Archipelago or Catch 22 and settle for Hogan's Heroes ( of TV sitcom fame ) . Changi makes Stalak 13 look the Hanoi Hilton . There is even a Corporal Schwarz-like Japanese guard who , like his sitcom counterpart has no stomach for war and comes close to saying I know nothing-Nothing ! Clavell , who knows how to spin yarn , would be great on a campout and we cannot forget the majestic sweep of his four ? good ? books , but , like the t-shirt says , I spent nearly four years in a Japanese POW camp and all could come up with was this lame book . I was going to give the book away but instead chucked into the recycle bin .
093 4 This is the 4th Clavell book I've read , I was more than a little disappointed . I've read them in order so far , Shogun and Tai-pan for me were breathtaking , long books which I sped through . Gai-jin was more of a chore , with not much of ending . I found King Rat dull , I think the story wasn't too interesting . Other customers have commented on how harsh the prison was - too be honest , I thought it would've been worse . The King had none of the charisma of the heroes in the other books , and I found myself not really caring whether or not either him or Marlowe made it . Although a lot was made of their inner feelings , this made me feel that they were both just shallow people .
094 4 after reading all of clavell's books , i was looking forward to King Rat . It made me uneasy . I was left with a very disatisfied feeling . Who rated this book so high ? were they relatives ?
I do not recommend it .
