Reviews with content warning for Pedophilia - Memoirs of a Geisha

I will edit when I get the book to see how far I read. I ended up not finishing this novel due to after conducting research on the author and the subject, discovered that the novel was based on a real life geisha who was to remain nameless. The author, supposedly, still revealed the name of the woman despite assuring that she would remain anonymous. I plan on reading her account on her life rather than this fictive one! That information ruined the book for me, but without knowing this it was an interesting read.

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elli_friend's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

I kinda like this book and I kinda loath myself for it. The book is thrilling, and I soon found myself fully indulged by it. Yes, the book can be disturbing at some parts, especially those depicting minor/adult (sexual) relationships, but i believe it was the authors full intention to revoke these emotions in the reader. However, once you look closer at the book through a more critical lenses many flaws and a lot of problematic content becomes apparent. A memoir of a geisha is a form of orientalism with a dash of fetishisation and a bitter aftertaste of a female mc written by a male author, aka a lot of objectification. At the end of the day it’s just another inaccurate portrayal of the far east by the west. Anyone considering reading this book shouldn’t expect historical accuracy or an in-depth analysis of Japanese culture but instead should read the book for what it is: historical FICTION.

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hanniquinn's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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junothan's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

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suchsweetsorrow89's review against another edition

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dark informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I honestly went into this book hesitant because it follows the plot of a young Japanese woman in WWII but is written by a white man. Because of this, the book has no real narrative for Sayuri. And this is a shame because the book is written in the first person and could have been used to portray a powerful story about the transition from girlhood to womanhood, how concepts and the idea of what a woman changes when this geisha role is assigned to her. As for the war, this was only really added at the end and just sped past it-- which again is a shame because it had the potential to cover grief, rage, imperialism, violence, and all the other big things that come with the war in such a powerful way. All this to say, I would not recommend this book to anyone.

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mooon's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.5

A mean-spirited book that tends to gloss over character relationships in favor of business-like descriptions of motivations and actions. The main character has a tendency to point out contradictions of Meiji Japan from a non-historical, fetishistic PoV; her cunning ends up being bitter observation. Scenes of sexual assault and acts linger uncomfortably. Shies away from any observations of colonial Japan or the post-WWII occupation of Japan.

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bri_lliantlybookishef669's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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