Geisha: A Life by Mineko Iwasaki Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Geisha: A Life
Book Review: One of the most successful Geisha of Kyoto
Summary: 3 Stars
I first read Memoirs of a Geisha in high school and fell deeply in love with the aesthethic and mysteries of Japanese culture. When I heard it was based from Mineko Iwasaki's life story (she states this herself), I very much wanted to read her version of the story. I finished the book in about 2 days and found it cut short. Iwasaki-san is very good at giving us detail and providing reason for customs but her storytelling falls short. I tried to parallel the two stories (Memoirs & Geisha) and found them to be significantly different. Yes, they both portray a successful dancing Geisha, but events and ending are not the same. I sometimes think Iwasaki-san is holding back or censoring certain information and events for the sake of maintaining her relations with the people connected to the Geisha practice. (Since she was already shunned for revealing too much for Arthur Golden's book.) It's a good quick read if you're looking for something light and short.Book Review: Pah-lease!
Summary: 3 Stars
I will probably be one of the few that have read the book and not liked it that much. There are things that I loved about this book but those things were difficult to see through all of Mineko's bragging and pretending like some things happened accidently. I think Mineko was probably very skilled at reading people that she wanted to impress and knowing what to do and say to get the right reactions from them. For example; I think she knew exactly what reaction she would get from the people at her first banquet when she went over to the dolls as though she were in awe. Or when she played hard to get with Tosio, etc etc etc. The fact that she was manipulative and knew what to do or say to get those reactions isn't the part that put me off because that was her job. What put me off was her PRETENDING as though it was all an accident or coincidence that everyone found her so appealing. She was so annoying in places in the book that I had to sympathize with the other geikos and maikos who disliked her so much that they played evil tricks on her. (I probably would have been the one putting pins in the bottom of her kimono!)She also contradicts herself throughout the book; first she has friends, then everyone hates her; she wants to please everyone then she hates people. Oy! Just too many times to say.
However, I did love learning about how the geisha world is run and everything that it takes to be one. I loved the pictures too. It was nice to see what the people in the book actually looked like. And wasn't Mineko just gorgeous? Okay, I've been catty enough....almost enough to have been a geiko during the
60's! ;-)
Book Review: Painful
Summary: 2 Stars
After reading "Memiors of a Geisha" and loving every minute of it, I was very excited to read "Geisha a Life" to get more of the truth behind what it is like to be a Geisha. Well sadly, I was very dissapointed. It was a very easy read but so boring that it ccould not hold my attention. I actaully read a few books inbetween. As far as writing styles goes, it felt like it was written by a child. Although she was an adult at the time of writing this book ,it still seems to be told through thte eyes of a 5 year old. All in all , I would not recomend this book to anyone. If you are under the age of 12 you may enjoy it. i think I will take the fictious verion over this one any day!Book Review: Poorly written
Summary: 1 Stars
I read this book a few months ago and was very disappointed. I had read "Memoirs of a Geisha" several years ago, while living in Japan and really enjoyed it - I thought this book might be similar. Not only is it very poorly written, the author comes across as arrogant and ignorant at the same time. Arrogance isn't a compelling characteristic in any culture, but it's particularly undesirable in Japanese culture. I kept reading though, expecting the book to get better - it didn't.Book Review: Portrait of the Life of a Geisha
Summary: 3 Stars
Like many others, I came upon "Geisha: A Life" when doing some research after reading Arthur Golden's "Memoirs of a Geisha". The two are radically different. Both are good in their own way, but you can't pick up Mineko Iwasaki's autobiography expecting the same thing. "Memoirs" is a typical Hollywood-type story: the main character comes from the lowest of lows and faces many trials before working her way to the top. Iwasaki's story, on the other hand, is that of a spoiled girl who was brought up to be the best and nothing less, and somehow can't seem to understand why other people don't like her.
First, let me say what Iwasaki does well. She paints a beautiful picture of the Gion Kobu and the life of the geisha there. She draws you in from the beginning with her photographic memory of her entire life, including the patterns on each and every kimono she wore.
Now on to the not-so-good... the biggest flaw I found was that the reader can feel absolutely no sympathy toward Iwasaki. She was not sold into the life of a geisha, she made the choice freely, and she was raised to be heir to the geisha house from the time she was 6 years old. She was spoiled and privileged from day 1. Iwasaki even goes on to explain later in the book how she attempted to keep her own apartment, but she knew nothing whatsoever about living by herself. She didn't know the concept of money, and in fact, she rarely even SAW money. While this does paint an interesting portrait about the priveleged life of some geisha, it certainly doesn't make the reader empathize toward Iwasaki. She also strives to be "Number 1", with no regards to friends or relationships, but then seems upset when the other geisha don't exactly warm up to her. And although Iwasaki is straightforward, honest, and doesn't gussy anything up for the reader, her writing seems to lack passion.
I'm not telling you not to read this book. If you are a lover of the geisha culture, or simply want an inside look at a geisha's life, it's worth a read. However, I think that nearly anyone who reads it will have a hard time getting through the entire thing without scoffing once or twice (or many times) at Iwasaki's lack of passion, compassion, and relate-ability.