Book Review: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

Reader review, originally contributed by Shubhli.

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is an enchanting love story that holds in its bosom a kaleidoscope of emotions, keeping us in rapturous attention right till the end. A bestseller that lets us stroll down a pathway from 1929 to the post-war years of Japan's dramatic history, as we take a peek into the half-explored, erotic world of geishas.

It is the gripping tale of six-year-old Chiyo, a small-town girl sold by her hapless father to pay for his sick wife's medication. The saga of an awkward, confused, shy girl with grey eyes — told she has too much water in her bones — who grows up to be the famous geisha Sayuri, with the skills to bring men to their feet with a mere look. An orphan who loses her heart at the tender age of 13 to the Chairman, a man four times her age. It is the Chairman's humble attitude, kind nature, and love-filled words that prompt Chiyo to wish for his attention, to make him laugh, to see him smile — and that makes her realize she can achieve it only by becoming a geisha herself. Whether Chiyo wished to be a geisha or not, how help arrived and how she became the most successful one was not just the work-play of fate. What changed Chiyo's course of life is a well-guarded secret the author unravels right at the end of the book.

By introducing geishas to us, Golden opens a door through which we step and lose ourselves in this erotic world of tea houses, exotic kimonos, geisha makeup, fascinating rituals, life in the okiya, and dance and singing lessons. A world where every little gesture has been perfected as an art — from laughing, walking, sitting, to even holding a tea cup. A world where a day begins in the evening, with fun-filled geisha laughter echoing in the streets and tea houses.

Contrary to popular belief, a geisha is not a prostitute but an entertainer and a performer, who surrenders her body only to her danna — a term a wife uses for her husband. But a geisha never marries, and those who do no longer continue as geishas. Finding a substantial danna for herself, who would cover all her living expenses, provide her with spending money, buy her gifts and kimonos, is crucial and vital — without a danna she can never gain her independence. But it was not an easy task. A geisha was expected to be beautiful, good at playing instruments like the flute and shamisen, a graceful dancer, well-versed in songs, poetry, and ballads, witty, well-groomed — she must know how to flirt without appearing vulgar, and yet appear approachable, all while being wary of her competitors. Golden creates a network of characters entwined and interlinked to weave the fabric of the story around Sayuri: Mameha and the Chairman came into her life to lead her to greater heights; Hatsumomo and Pumpkin were created to ruin her, degrade her, and make her life miserable; Nobu adds the twists and turns that make the story more dramatic. As you get accustomed to the luxuries and lose yourself in the flamboyant geisha world, there comes the war, blowing everything away — darkness settles in as the government orders the geisha districts closed.

Did Sayuri survive the war? Did she meet the love of her life, or did she go back to being a geisha? Well — buy yourself a copy and find out. A word of advice to all those who would want to watch the motion picture based on the book: do keep a box of tissues handy, for Sayuri's life story is sure to touch sensitive hearts.

Editor's note: Memoirs of a Geisha (1997) was not without real-world controversy. After the Japanese edition appeared, Arthur Golden was sued by Mineko Iwasaki — a retired geisha, once among Japan's most famous, whom Golden had interviewed for background research. Iwasaki asserted that Golden had promised to protect her anonymity, then named her in his acknowledgments, exposing her to backlash; in 2003 Golden's publisher settled with her out of court for an undisclosed sum. Iwasaki later published her own autobiography, Geisha, a Life (2002), presenting a very different picture of geisha life — and insisting that the novel's central mizuage episode had no basis in her experience. Worth knowing before, or after, you read.