I just finished reading this book - Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden, and i have been overwhelmed by it's lyricism and fluidity in narration. It certainly has become one of my favourites not just because it's a work of art, also because there are so many things i could learn from this book.
It gives an insight into the world of a geisha (in this case a very popular one and one of the best geishas ever). A world which has always carried a tag of the exotic and mysterious with it has been laid bare and so beautifully, as it deserves. What makes this book unique is the fact that this is not a documentary or a third-person view of this closely gaurded world, it's an insight into the geishas world told by a geisha.
It's like going deep-sea diving and coming across this beautiful and colourful treasure hidden from the rest of the world.
Memoirs... traces the story of Nitta Sayuri from her childhood, from her tipsy little house on a cliff to the streets of Gion in Kyoto to the bustling excitement of NewYork.
It is lyrical, fluid, seamless, and makes you feel so much for this little girl who is sold by her parents into something much bigger than she can ever imagine, something that is going to change her life forever.
It also gave me such a different perspective into the geisha world. I realised what all being a Geisha entails. One has to know the art of entertaining (in fact the world geisha means artisan); know the art of conversation, seduction and persuation, diplomacy and of course mind-games! No wonder geishas have such control over men and their patrons. But despite having so much control over the men in their life, they end up being totally dependent on them.
One also gets to take a peep into this mysterious world as an insider. Things like geishas being so superstitious that they don't do anything without consulting their almanac! Or that they have to let their hair remain unwashed for days on end because of the elaborate hairstyles (and there are different hairstyles and kimonos for different levels of geishas). Speaking of kimonos, i had no idea that wearing it is such a task that geishas always have a dresser for assisting in wearing one and also that all kimonos are of the same length no matter who wears them!
There is a lot of humour and pathos in the narrative as well as beautiful metaphors. I could imagine Sayuri with her Shamisen or Sayuri dancing with a beautiful fan in one hand while her other arm gracefully makes a sweeping gesture. There are innumerable such instances which makes this book such a masterpiece! I have been overwhelmed by this book and will be thinking of Sayuri, the okia, and geishas for a long time to come.
Read the reviews on this book at http://www.bookbrowse.com/dyn_/title/titleID/332.htm
It gives an insight into the world of a geisha (in this case a very popular one and one of the best geishas ever). A world which has always carried a tag of the exotic and mysterious with it has been laid bare and so beautifully, as it deserves. What makes this book unique is the fact that this is not a documentary or a third-person view of this closely gaurded world, it's an insight into the geishas world told by a geisha.
It's like going deep-sea diving and coming across this beautiful and colourful treasure hidden from the rest of the world.
Memoirs... traces the story of Nitta Sayuri from her childhood, from her tipsy little house on a cliff to the streets of Gion in Kyoto to the bustling excitement of NewYork.
It is lyrical, fluid, seamless, and makes you feel so much for this little girl who is sold by her parents into something much bigger than she can ever imagine, something that is going to change her life forever.
It also gave me such a different perspective into the geisha world. I realised what all being a Geisha entails. One has to know the art of entertaining (in fact the world geisha means artisan); know the art of conversation, seduction and persuation, diplomacy and of course mind-games! No wonder geishas have such control over men and their patrons. But despite having so much control over the men in their life, they end up being totally dependent on them.
One also gets to take a peep into this mysterious world as an insider. Things like geishas being so superstitious that they don't do anything without consulting their almanac! Or that they have to let their hair remain unwashed for days on end because of the elaborate hairstyles (and there are different hairstyles and kimonos for different levels of geishas). Speaking of kimonos, i had no idea that wearing it is such a task that geishas always have a dresser for assisting in wearing one and also that all kimonos are of the same length no matter who wears them!
There is a lot of humour and pathos in the narrative as well as beautiful metaphors. I could imagine Sayuri with her Shamisen or Sayuri dancing with a beautiful fan in one hand while her other arm gracefully makes a sweeping gesture. There are innumerable such instances which makes this book such a masterpiece! I have been overwhelmed by this book and will be thinking of Sayuri, the okia, and geishas for a long time to come.
Read the reviews on this book at http://www.bookbrowse.com/dyn_/title/titleID/332.htm
