Geisha of Gion
by Mineko Iwasaki
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of this book.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
lists with this book
Where's the love? Add this book to your favorite list.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 927)
Read in March, 2008
I enjoyed this book! Mineko Iwasaki was one of the primary information sources for "Memoirs of a Geisha," but she was so dissatisfied with the sensationalized nature of that story that she was moved to write her own. I haven't read "Memoirs," but I remember that the movie didn't hold my attention, mostly due to the fact that it portrayed geishas as also being prostitutes, which made me lose patience with it. (For some reason, I remember learning this in school, with conjun...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in February, 2004
I'd vaguely remembered hearing/reading something (maybe on NPR or 50bookchallenge posts) about Mineko Iwasaki, the prime source & inspiration for Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha: A Novel, being disappointed with the portrayal of the geisha life in that novel, and therefore, she had written her own memoirs. So I checked this book out from the library and I now see where her concerns lie.
Mineko (born Masako...more
Mineko (born Masako...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in February, 2008
Like most people who pick up this book, I had previously Memoirs of a Geisha. And why I had thoroughly enjoyed that book as a work of fiction based on a real life subject, I thoroughly enjoyed this book as someone who had actually gone through the system.
The hard life of a geisha in terms of training and structure was to be expected. I think thats what makes it so beautiful. It's the energy and practice that goes into a tea ceremony, somethin so simple yet complex.
It's a shame much of that...more
The hard life of a geisha in terms of training and structure was to be expected. I think thats what makes it so beautiful. It's the energy and practice that goes into a tea ceremony, somethin so simple yet complex.
It's a shame much of that...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in March, 2008
As much as I enjoyed Memoirs of a Geisha, I thought this autobiography, by the actual geisha the book was based on, would be amazing. She apparently wrote it in response to Golden's book, which Wikipedia informs me pissed her off, as she felt it was incorrect and misrepresented the true geisha culture.
However, the book is obviously ghost-written, which would be fine if it was by someone who was a better writer. Even though the story is interesting, the writing is choppy, clunky and un...more
However, the book is obviously ghost-written, which would be fine if it was by someone who was a better writer. Even though the story is interesting, the writing is choppy, clunky and un...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2008
I watched a geisha documentary thing recently and it made me remember that my mother lent me this book approximately a million years ago and that I never read it. So I did. Super interesting! I like that she is so unapologetically herself. I didn't find her terribly likable a lot of the time; she came across as very arrogant and spoiled (understandable, I suppose, given her circumstances) and there was a vast difference between how she treated people and how she expected them to treat...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in October, 2003
2003: As the story of a "Geisha" I found this "truth" refreshing! Enlightening after fully accepting the "truth" of Golden's book a few years ago.
The lists of Japanese names (people, positions, kimono and hair styles / traditions) were a bit overwhelming.
I feel that she does unto others what she claims she doesn't want done unto herself. Ignoring her own lesson while handing out punishment. I doubt we receive a very objective view of all her enemies and I thin...more
The lists of Japanese names (people, positions, kimono and hair styles / traditions) were a bit overwhelming.
I feel that she does unto others what she claims she doesn't want done unto herself. Ignoring her own lesson while handing out punishment. I doubt we receive a very objective view of all her enemies and I thin...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Unlike the memoir of a geisha (which I just found out - after I finished writing mine- reading the other reviews is based on this lady's life) this is a true memoir or some might say autobiography of one. Set in the Geisha world after the war. A good insight on the actual world of Geisha. However if not at all familiar with it, you might have to guess what some of the words mean.
A very strong minded person since she was a child, she chose to be a geisha. She was neither forced to or sold to be...more
A very strong minded person since she was a child, she chose to be a geisha. She was neither forced to or sold to be...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 2008
To say I actually read this is a lie. I have no idea where it came from, but it looked interesting and so I just picked it up today to read. I started reading it, I read almost all of the first chapter,,, then I wondered if the Japanese geisha writer had actually written it in English herself. After reading random snippets throughout the book I determined that the writing in this book is far too painful to endure for 300 pages. I felt like I was reading a 5th grade diary - a list of day-to-day a...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This book exposed me to a complete different culture, different behaviror, norms and values. It describes the journey of a beautiful japanese woman who at a very yearly age decides to become a geisha. A geisha is an artist and an entertainer (not a prostitute as many people think) and Mineko, the main character, chooses to become a geisha out of love for dancing. The book allows us to see transparently the hardships she encounteers on the way to achieving success, the jealousies of her friends a...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2008
I finished "Geisha, A Life" yesterday, it was really really good. What a severe and circumscribed and rigid life, hard but also beautiful. Mineko is an incredible woman, very strong, very determined, and I was interested in how she found creative ways to help herself and stay sane in an extremely demanding profession. I also loved reading the details of this strange career. Her kimono (kimono is plural and singular) were hand made of the finest fabrics and cost between 5,000 and 7,...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in July, 2008
Autobiography of a famous geisha in late 20th century... a lot of the events are not what you'd expect. Very fascinating and an interesting narration. While Memoirs of a Geisha basically took all the different roles of women in the pleasure quarters (from Oiran to the common prostitute) and mixed it into an incorrect portrayal of a Geisha, this was a very accurate and concise depiction of a life in that world. It's especially fascinating to note her explanation of the heavy tradition in these so...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2006
recommends it for:
Everyone
This is a great journey through the true story of one of the most famous geisha's. It is written similar to a diary and details her childhood, her decisions and the geisha world.
I received this book as a present and thought that it was the book that they were making a movie Memoirs of a Geisha about. I was wrong. This is a true story written by a woman, a geisha. Memoirs of a Geisha was actually written by a man. This was such an amazing book, I was so disappointed by the movie. I wo...more
I received this book as a present and thought that it was the book that they were making a movie Memoirs of a Geisha about. I was wrong. This is a true story written by a woman, a geisha. Memoirs of a Geisha was actually written by a man. This was such an amazing book, I was so disappointed by the movie. I wo...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This is the story of a young girl who is sold into the life of “geishood”. I liked the seemingly authenticity of this book with a look back into the life of a geisha pre and post world war two in Japan. It’s very unique and intriguing as to what that life was like (which is a little disturbing)…it definitely keeps you reading. I didn’t want to put it down. I was interested in Syuri’s relationship with Nabu-san b/c it seemed complex. But, I was actually disappointed by the end. I ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2007
Ever since I read "Memoirs of a Geisha" I've wanted to read this one, as Arthur Golden mentions this book as being one of his inspirations. On my way to Italy I found it at the airport, and immediately bought it. It did not disappoint. Where MoaG takes place around World War 2, this one describes the life of a Geisha in the 60s and 70s. You get to read about how Mineko meets Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth and several other celebrities that we 'know'. Fascinating book.
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Oh what a wonderful book! This year I have read A Thousand Splendid Suns, The Other Bolyn Girl, and now this--all books about women's lives, in different times and on different continents--and two things stand out.
1. Women have really had a hard time through the ages--I can't believe the persecution, stupidity, and how males regard and treat women like chattel over the ages.
2. Am I ever glad to be an American woman in thie era! The things I take for granted....
Anyway, this was a wo...more
1. Women have really had a hard time through the ages--I can't believe the persecution, stupidity, and how males regard and treat women like chattel over the ages.
2. Am I ever glad to be an American woman in thie era! The things I take for granted....
Anyway, this was a wo...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I had to return this book to the library (there was a hold on it so I couldn't renew). I actually started to enjoy this story better than Memoirs of a Geisha. It had a slow start and the pace was a little sleepy, but it was an interesting autobiography. Its important to note that the author is the Geisha whom (who?) Arthur Golden interviewed to gather info for his novel (Memoirs of a Geisha). Aaaand, she sued him for defamation. But anyway, just something to think about...
What I have read ...more
What I have read ...more
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in June, 2006
recommends it for:
anyone interested in the life of a geisha
i read this book after i have read 'memoirs of a geisha' because i wanted to see through the eyes of a retired geisha to understand what it was really like. This book was set in Gion, one of the wealthiest entertainment districts so paints a picture of how the well off in the business had live while showing you of the great sadness and strains that the geisha were put under from such a young age. This book was well worth reading after 'memoirs of a geisha' as it gives a first hand account of ho...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This book adds reality to what was missing in Memoirs of a Geisha. Unfortunately, it suffers from too much involvement from Ms. Iwasaki and at times seems specifically geared to refute certain details in Memoirs of a Geisha. It shows... she doth protest too much.
It IS an interesting book if you take into account Ms. Iwasaki's perspective, as a woman on top of the Gion food chain. Fascinating, detailed and beautiful, but it absolutely fudges reality in favor of her reputation amoung the Gio...more
It IS an interesting book if you take into account Ms. Iwasaki's perspective, as a woman on top of the Gion food chain. Fascinating, detailed and beautiful, but it absolutely fudges reality in favor of her reputation amoung the Gio...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in November, 2007
I picked this one up because I LOVED Memoirs of a Geisha (which is fictional). This book is a true memoir of a formerly successful geisha in the most famous area in Japan for the geisha tradition, Gion...I found this book really interesting but not as magical as Memoirs of a Geisha. The Golden novel follows quite closely the traditions of the education and lifestyle of a geisha described in this book, partly because Golden interviewed this author when researching his book.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2002
Unbelievable book... very moving and I cried and cried. Mineko Iwasaki does a fabulous job of discussing her world and the life of a Geisha!
Get your tissues read, you will need them. The fight of a young girl farmed out because there were too many mouths to feed pre-WWII. A prelude to Memoirs of a Geisha. A fascinating autobiography that is not presumptuous, but delicately embraces the real facts of life in "becoming" a Geisha.
Wish you well...
S
Get your tissues read, you will need them. The fight of a young girl farmed out because there were too many mouths to feed pre-WWII. A prelude to Memoirs of a Geisha. A fascinating autobiography that is not presumptuous, but delicately embraces the real facts of life in "becoming" a Geisha.
Wish you well...
S
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
