Should I read Memoirs of a Geisha?

The long and short of it: Yes
When was it made: 1997

Written by Arthur Golden, Memoirs is a narrative from the first person perspective of a World War II era geisha named Sayuri. It offers a little inside view into the world of geisha and what they actually do-supposedly accurate, but as I am not a World War II geisha I can't confirm or deny that. Mr. Golden is a master of the first person-when combined with the nonexistent translator's note, it took me a while to remember that this was a work of fiction. The characters are realistic and human. They do bad things, and no one is portrayed as truly a saint or truly a demon-except maybe Hatsumomo, but I even ended up empathizing with her a tiny bit.

The book really jumped into the public eye with the release of the movie in 2005 (which had a surprising number of Chinese playing Japanese people). The movie won a few Oscars, which of course jumps up the popularity of the book. Part of this may be the recent American trend to worship all things Far Eastern, but the book stands well on its own, and though I loved the movie the book is far superior.

Now this is not an action book. There are no spies, no knights, no gladiators. The closest you come to action is a few beatings here and there. The book is much more subtle, where the action is found in a smile or a properly timed comment and not in bullet time or epic swordfights. There is also a bit of sex in the book-none of it graphic and none of it tagged on as fanservice-so kiddies beware. If you are looking for a good lighthearted fantasy book filled with swordfights and gunplay or are too young to see a PG-13 movie, keep on moving. If you are looking for an intelligent book to rope you up and keep you enthralled, find a copy of Memoirs of a Geisha (the fun thing about movie books is that there are copies floating around everywhere that people who hate to read but loved the movie bought on a whim, so they can be found for cheap).

I got this book on the 3rd of July. My parents were in town, and we were driving to a nearby town for a celebration-my parents got lost, and when we had finally found our way my father asked "why didn't you tell us we were about to go the wrong way?" all I could answer was "Because Chiyo had just made it to the Natta Okiya!" My nose was so deep in that book that it took the explosions and barbecue of the Independence Day to pull me away-and only then just barely. The characters felt real to me, and although it never brought me to tears it did managed to influence my emotions. The book has kind of a sad feel to it, and is a bit fatalistic, even though the end is technically happy. I have a lot of favorite moments, but one of the big ones occurs during Hatsumomo's breakdown when the blind musician, unaware of the somber mood, asks what just happened. The book is filled with witty banter, though, and it's the intelligence and fun to be found in this book that are definitely worth the read.