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Staff Pick
Geisha: A Life

Geisha: A Life

Current price: $17.99
Publication Date: September 1st, 2003
Publisher:
Atria Books
ISBN:
9780743444293
Pages:
320
Usually Ships in 1 to 5 Days

Staff Reviews

One of the first books I bought after getting the job here at Winterriver was Geisha of Gion (The UK version of Geisha: A Life). Growing up, I loved watching the movie, Memiors of a Geisha, which isloosely based off of Mineko Iwasaki's life.

In her autobiography, Mineko Iwasaki goes into depth and detail to describe her life as a geisha, or Geiko, and what it meant for her. She talks about the isolation she felt, and how she used that feeling to strive to be the best. That is what she acheived. Mineko Iwasaki is known as Japan's Greatest Geisha. Her book details her life in such a fascinating and interesting turn of events, and how each of those events shaped her future and career.

— Alysha L.

Description

No woman in the three-hundred-year history of the karyukai has ever come forward in public to tell her story—until now.

"Many say I was the best geisha of my generation," writes Mineko Iwasaki. "And yet, it was a life that I found too constricting to continue. And one that I ultimately had to leave." Trained to become a geisha from the age of five, Iwasaki would live among the other "women of art" in Kyoto's Gion Kobu district and practice the ancient customs of Japanese entertainment. She was loved by kings, princes, military heroes, and wealthy statesmen alike. But even though she became one of the most prized geishas in Japan's history, Iwasaki wanted more: her own life. And by the time she retired at age twenty-nine, Iwasaki was finally on her way toward a new beginning.

Geisha, a Life is her story -- at times heartbreaking, always awe-inspiring, and totally true.

About the Author

MINEKO reached the peak of her career as a geisha in the 70s and 80s, performing for the likes of the Queen and Prince Charles. Now, decades later (and still stunningly beautiful), she is the mother of one daughter and lives with her husband in a suburb of Kyoto, Japan.

Praise for Geisha: A Life

Kirkus Reviews [A] valuable look at a little-known world, and an intimate glimpse into Japanese culture.