Tales of Geisha and Samurai

Explore the exciting world of Japan:

	Memoirs of a Geisha. Golden, Arthur. In Memoirs of a Geisha, we enter a world where appearances are paramount; where a girl's virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder; where women are trained to beguile the most powerful men; and where love is scorned as illusion. Sayuri's story begins in a poor fishing village in 1929, when, as a nine-year-old with unusual blue-gray eyes, she is taken from her home and sold into slavery to a renowned geisha house.
The Demon in the Teahouse. Hoobler, Dorothy. When several geishas are murdered and fires are set in the Yoshiwara district of Edo, Judge Ooka knows he must act quickly. Based on a real character in 18th-century Japan who was known for his reasoning and his ability to solve crimes, the man comes up with a plan. He strategically places his adopted son, 14-year-old Seikei, in a teahouse frequented by a popular geisha who seems to have some connection to both the fires and the murders, and he tells him to keep his eyes open.
	The Tale of Murasaki . Dalby, Liza. The young Murasaki dreams of serving as a lady-in-waiting at the empress's court, but her father is a humble scholar, a position that doesn't merit such honors for his children. Instead, she is betrothed to Nobutaka, an old relative and family friend. Murasaki attempts to resist this match and, with her girlhood friend, invents an ideal, "imaginary lover," the shining Prince Genji. A fictional biography of Murasaki Shikibu, author of The Tale of Genji, the most famous tale in Japanese literature.
The Painting. Schuyler, Nina In 1869 Japan , a young woman escapes the confines of her arranged marriage by painting memories of the man she loves on mulberry paper. When her husband, a talented potter and government official, arranges for his next delivery of wares to Europe , she hides her painting in the shipment. In France , a disenchanted young man works as a clerk at an import shop. When discovers the brilliant watercolor of two lovers locked in an embrace under a plum tree, he steals it and becomes obsessed with the painting and its meaning.
	The Samurai's Garden. Tsukiyama, Gail. Seventeen-year-old Stephen leaves his home in Hong Kong just as the Japanese are poised to invade China . He is sent to Tarumi, a small village in Japan , to recuperate from tuberculosis. His developing friendship with three adults and a young woman his own age brings him to the beginnings of wisdom about love, honor, and loss.
Geisha: A Life. Mineko Iwasaki. Mineko's remarkable story tells of leaving home at the age of four to enter a geisha house. Here, Mineko made her fame and fortune as a dancer. Appearing and entertaining at as many as ten parties an evening, she would dance for ten minutes at each and earn tens of thousands of dollars for the night's work. Mineko also covers the importance of appearance, describing the elements of beauty, including the kimono. These garments were a special -- and costly -- part of a geisha's appearance, and could only be worn a few times.
	The Dragon Scroll. Parker, I.J. On his first official assignment, Sugawara Akitada is on a nearly impossible mission to discover why tax convoys are disappearing in the distant province of Kazusa . In the politically murky world of the Japanese court, he has been set up to fail. However, the resourceful Akitada, his elderly servant and his impudent bodyguard are determined to fulfill their mission and discover the truth in a town of dangerous secrets.
The Tokaido Road . Robson, Lucia St. Clair After the execution of her father, the young and beautiful Lady Asano is in grave danger from the powerful Lord Kira. In order to save herself Asano must travel three hundred miles to the imperial city of Kyoto . Disguising her loveliness in the humble garments of a traveling priest, and calling herself Cat, Lady Asano travels the fabled Tokaido Road . Her only tools are her quick wits, her samurai training, and her deadly, six foot-long naginata. And she will need them all, for a ronin has been hired to pursue her, a mysterious man who will play a role in Cat's drama that neither could have ever imagined. . . .
	Across the Nightingale Floor. Hearn, Lian. Set in a fantasy world inspired by medieval Japan , Takeo is born as one of the Hidden, a pacifistic group opposed to any sort of violence, but must meet brutality head-on when a local warlord destroys his villages and murders his family. Rescued by a rival warlord, Takeo becomes the adopted son of Lord Shigeru and learns of his true heritage as one of the Tribe, a clan of assassins with supernatural powers.
Autumn Bridge . Matsuoka, Takashi. In the year 1311, in the highest tower of Cloud of Sparrows Castle , a beautiful woman sits by the window, watching as enemies gather below. As she calmly awaits her fate, she begins to write, carefully setting down on a scroll the secret history of the Okumichi clan...of the gift of prophecy they share and the extraordinary destiny that awaits them. For six centuries, these remarkable writings lay hidden--until they are uncovered by an American woman, a missionary named Emily Gibson, who arrived in Edo harbor in 1861, in flight from a tragic past.

Prepared from various reviews by Joy Foust and Katey Craver. 10/05

Back to the Cyber Cafe