The pillow book of Sei Shōnagon by Sei Shōnagon

3.97 AVERAGE

hello_amy's review against another edition

3.5
funny informative lighthearted slow-paced
Girls have been girls for 1000 years

mervorita's review against another edition

3.75
challenging dark funny informative lighthearted reflective slow-paced
mintyfreshsocks's profile picture

mintyfreshsocks's review against another edition

4.0
This is a great book. It portrays a rarefied world in a detailed and vivacious manner. Unlike many works of the time, there is much less pathos and unhappiness in this book; the book is a series of gems and delights, spilling out after each other.
chealey14's profile picture

chealey14's review against another edition

3.5
challenging funny informative lighthearted reflective slow-paced

spiritualkungfu's review against another edition

3.0
Pretty interesting look at Heian era Japan, I wasn't so interested in anything other then that, Shonagon talks about this and that but nothing of great importance but it was still worth reading.

ollie_reading's review against another edition

*

emily_mcclanathan's review against another edition

2.0
informative lighthearted slow-paced
Avoid the Arthur Waley translation. Based on other reviews, it sounds like the Meredith McKinney translation is much better. 
smudj's profile picture

smudj's review against another edition

4.25
informative lighthearted reflective relaxing slow-paced
ian_2's profile picture

ian_2's review against another edition

3.0
Strangely modern and often funny.

_kaylee_m_'s review against another edition

3.0
This book is full of observations, opinions, and anecdotes written by a lady in waiting of the empress of Japan. Many of her stories and lists of things she loves/hates are so intimate and at the same time so universal to the human condition that the book has a surprisingly modern feel. At the same time, passages mentioning Japanese customs, Buddhist temples, and poetry sent me scurrying to the footnotes for explanations, and served as a reminder of how far apart in culture and time I am from Shonagon.