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Geisha, A Life Audio CD – Unabridged, March 1, 2021

by Mineko Iwasaki (Author)

4.5 1,349 ratings

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Celebrated as the most successful geisha of her generation, Mineko Iwasaki was only five years old when she left her parents' home for the world of the geisha. For the next twenty-five years, she would live a life filled with extraordinary professional demands and rich rewards. Through great pride and determination, she would be hailed as one of the most prized geishas in Japan's history, and one of the last great practitioners of this now fading art form.

In Geisha, a Life, Mineko Iwasaki tells her story, from her warm early childhood, to her intense yet privileged upbringing in the Iwasaki okiya (household), to her years as a renowned geisha, and finally, to her decision at the age of twenty-nine to retire and marry, a move that would mirror the demise of geisha culture. Mineko brings to life the beauty and wonder of Gion Kobu, a place that "existed in a world apart, a special realm whose mission and identity depended on preserving the time-honored traditions of the past."

Geisha, a Life is the first of its kind, as it delicately unfolds the fabric of a geisha's development. Told with great wisdom and sensitivity, it is a true story of beauty and heroism, and of a time and culture rarely revealed to the Western world.

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About the Author

Born in 1949, Mineko Iwasaki began training in the arts of dance and etiquette when she was five years old. Soon after becoming a full-fledged geisha, Mineko was lauded as the star geisha of the Gion Kobu of Kyoto. She held that position until retirement at the age of twenty-nine. Now fifty-two, Mineko has one daughter and lives with her husband in a Kyoto suburb.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08ZBMQZ38
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tantor and Blackstone Publishing; Unabridged edition (March 1, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Audio CD ‏ : ‎ 1 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8200266012
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.2 x 5.7 inches

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4.5 1,349 ratings

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Rande Brown
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RANDE BROWN, LCSW is a founding board member and formerly the Executive Director of the Tricycle Foundation, publisher of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, America’s leading Buddhist magazine. With a degree in East Asian Studies from Princeton University, Brown lived for many years in Japan, where she was Associate Director of the International Division of the Institute for Religion and Psychology in Tokyo. Upon returning to the U.S., she founded East West Communications, a leading force in cross-cultural programming between Japan and the United States for over 20 years. A well-known translator of Japanese spiritual and cultural texts, Brown co-authored the New York Times bestseller Geisha, A Life with Mineko Iwasaki (Atria, 2002), which has been translated into 18 languages and is still in print. A graduate of the first Foundations Course of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care, Brown served as a volunteer Chaplain at Beth Israel Medical Center and is a founding member of the Center’s board. Her experience as a chaplain inspired her to become a licensed psychotherapist and psychoanalyst with a specific interest in the intersection of Buddhism, spirituality, and psychology. Brown is a graduate of the Silver School of Social Work of New York University and a graduate of the William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis & Psychology. She is currently in private practice in Greenwich Village and has recently finished a new book, Reincarnation Karma: One Woman’s Wild Ride on the Cycles of Birth and Death.
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Mineko Iwasaki
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Marty L.

Geisha True Story book

Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2024

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I was actually shocked that this author was born the same year I was. Who knew this was still going on? I cannot even fathom the geisha life of serving, RULES, living with only women, always being pleasant. I felt it was a good read and eye opening. I learned that sex is not involved in the geisha life. I was horrified that the family let the little girl decide at age 5 to go live and be trained to be a geisha (which takes many years.) The culture of not mentioning details of ones family or life had to be very confusing.
The woman who translated did a fantastic job using descriptive words. She must have a considerable command of Japanese.

3 people found this helpful

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Mrs. V

Wonderful insight into another culture

Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2015

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What a wonderful read - highly recommended. Dynamic, well written, and fluid (kudos to the translator as well). If you are interested in Japanese culture, social and behavioural dynamics, this book should be highly enjoyable. I had very little interest in the life of the Geiko/Geisha, but I must say, this book offers tremendous insight into a world which is largely invisible to me. As Westerners living in Japan, I often feel like we are "guests" here; we are almost always treated with the tremendous courtesy and politeness that is part of Japanese culture and society. I have often wondered what everyday life is like for the average Japanese citizen. Mineko Iwasaki's like could hardly be called average, and as much as I enjoyed the insight into the lifestyle of the Geiko/Geisha, I found the stories about the relationships with family, friends, and neighbors, far more interesting. The photos sprinkled throughout the book span several decades and were a very nice "extra" as the visuals of the kimonos and hairstyles and family photos were very interesting.

So why did I give this book 4 stars instead of 5? Indeed it is the kind of book I looked forward to coming home to; yet, there were two things that I didn't care for. One, especially as the story progresses, it becomes a bit of a soap-opera drama. I guess that is to be expected, life as a child/teenager were consumed with intensive training and there was precious little time for anything else. That watered down the quality a bit (the details of the love affair could have been minimized; that didn't add a lot of value). Two, many people with whom the author had disagreements were "called out;" I felt trapped as a reader to have to listen to the author vent - and it is unfair, as only one side of the story is presented. I think a better use of pages would be to steer those conversations to a "bigger picture." For example, when the older sister Yaeko succumbs to Alzheimer's, it would have been more valuable to have a discussion on elder care in modern Japanese society. Or, some discussion of the cultural dynamics of why their family put up with Yaeko's behavior when she returned home.

All in all, a wonderful read, I enjoyed this book and plan to read this again, perhaps after we have a chance to visit Kyoto. I recommend this book highly.

7 people found this helpful

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paul

a great book

Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2024

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this book is the true story, and it's well told. memoirs of a geisha is a trash book, and the movie is worse.
iwasaki meneko is an amazing person, and her story is worth reading.

One person found this helpful

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John C

A Geiko's Biography

Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2012

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To be blunt, I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Originally having discovered it on a popular geisha oriented website, I was intrigued to read it after finding out that Mineko Iwasaki advised Arthur Golden for his book, Memoirs of a Geisha. Knowing that Golden's book was merely a fairy tale, I wanted a true to life depiction of what a geisha's, or in this case, geiko's (the meaning of which is explained in the text) life was like and what I found in this book was a true, yet privileged telling of just that.

Iwasaki begins the book when she was just a little girl, no older than three. It was enjoyable reading about her childhood experiences and I found them quite interesting in how they influenced her opinions later in life. She moves on to tell about how she met the lady who owns the okiya, or geisha house, where she would one day work, and also about all of the people that lived there. She continues by telling about how she came to live in the okiya and soon she was officially recognized as its effective heiress.

Iwasaki's story continues by describing her day to day life from her time as an apprentice maiko all the way through to its end including the later adventures she went on while still working as a geiko with her friends and patrons. She also continues past the end of her career to tell how her life was going around the time the book was written.

Overall I found the book to be honest, witty, informative and very enjoyable. That being said, it must be recognized that due to Iwasaki's hard work and obsession to be the best, the life she lead as a geiko was a very privileged one. The story of her life would definitely be different from another geisha's, but that is one of the reasons her life was so unique. I believe that anyone interested in the iconic symbol of Japan, the geisha, should definitely read this book. It was very entertaining and informative from beginning to end.

12 people found this helpful

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Handsome 88

Bought the hardcover and no regrets

Reviewed in Canada on December 16, 2023

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I love how this iconic geisha came out of controversy to tell her true story and contradict Arthur Golden's rip off of her story.

The clarification and honest perspective she provides is a more accurate account of the truth lives of a Geisha. Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha, was beautifully written, but based on dishonesty and basically ripping off the story from a true Geisha and misrepresented her story.

That's why I'm thrilled to support this book and keep as part of my collection.

JACIRA MOTA

Wonderful Story

Reviewed in Brazil on March 18, 2023

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This book is excelent because it brings the culture of geisha world. Everything in it depends of the women who are trained since they are little children until they become adult persons.

Evalira

Muy emotivo

Reviewed in Mexico on January 25, 2022

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Es un libro muy bonito y sorprendentemente emotivo, la manera en que Mineko narra su vida es muy envolvente. La lectura fue fácil. La ventana hacia la verdadera vida en Gion, que este libro ofrece, es de una vista espectacular.

One person found this helpful

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