An incredible period novel has been penned as the ‘best’ by fans. Memoirs of a Geisha topped the list for Best Historical Fiction as voted for by Goodreads fans. Published in 1997 and written by Arthur Golden, the book was a bestseller, and fans describe it as a “must-read”.
The book’s synopsis reads: “Memoirs of a Geisha” tells the story of Chiyo, a young Japanese girl who is sold to a geisha house in Kyoto in 1929. She endures hardship and intense training to become the renowned geisha, Sayuri, navigating a world of beauty, eroticism, and political upheaval leading up to and during World War II.”
Memoirs of a Geisha was adapted for film and released in 2005. The film was directed by Rob Marshall and starred Zhang Ziyi.
It was nominated for six Academy Awards and picked up three wins among those, as well as various other major awards.
The book has scored 4.16 stars out of five on Goodreads, with more than two million ratings.
One fan said: “A timeless genre picture of a strong woman making the best out of terrible circumstances.”
Another reviewer said: “This is the beautiful story of a little innocent girl as she fights her way through life and hardships in an unfair society and struggles to reach her loved one and have a reason to simply wake up every day and live.
“This is not a fairy tale, but it does contain certain elements of those tales. Therefore, this book is not for everyone, but I really enjoyed it and find it very memorable and special.”
A third added: “This was one of the best-written books I have ever read. There was something so special about the writing style, I can’t really put it into words. It was just so “fitting” and transported me right into this fascinating world. I knew absolutely nothing about the Geisha tradition going into this book, and I feel like I’ve learnt so much.”
Memoirs of a Geisha is available to purchase in most bookshops and online, and the film is available to stream right now on Netflix.