Memoirs of a Geisha | Memoirs of a Geisha

At a glance:

Author: Arthur Golden
First Published: 1997
Type of Work: Novel
Time of Work: 1929-1985
Setting: Yoriodo and Kyoto, Japan; and New York City
Principal Characters: Nitta Sayuri, Satsu, Pumpkin, Mameha, Hatsumomo, The Chairman, Nobu
Genres: Long fiction, Historical fiction
Subjects: New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Sexism, Love or romance, Gender roles, New York City, 1930’s, Servants, Japan or Japanese people, Japanese Americans, Apprentices
Locales: New York, NY, Kyoto, Japan

In his literary debut, Arthur Golden parlays his academic training in Japanese history and culture into a Dickensian first- person narrative of a geisha girl’s rise to prominence in pre-World War II Japan. As a product of meticulous research, Memoirs of a Geisha provides a detailed portrait of a little-known but much mythologized profession. In other respects, the novel has its weaknesses: The characterizations are often two-dimensional and thin (as was true for Charles Dickens’s work at times), set scenes can take on a touristy aesthetic (Sayuri never forgets she is speaking...

Memoirs of a Geisha | Memoirs of a Geisha

At a glance:

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