Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

14 reviews

literarysaara's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Quotations that were meaningful for me as I read through this book....

"I never seek to defeat the man I am fighting," he (The Admiral) explained. "I seek to defeat his confidence. A mind troubled by doubt cannot focus on the course to victory. Two men are equals - true equals - only when they both have equal confidence."

More Quotations that stood out to me...
 
I fell into a sound sleep and dreamed that I was at a banquet back in Gion, talking with an elderly man who was explaining to me that his wife, whom he'd cared for deeply, wasn't really dead because the pleasure of their time together lived on inside him. While he spoke these words, I drank from a bowl of the most extraordinary soup I'd ever tasted; every briny sip was a kind of ecstacy. I began to feel that all the people I'd ever known who had died or left me had not in fact gone away, but continued to live on inside me just as this man's wife lived on inside him. I felt as though I were drinking them all in - my sister, Satsu, who had run away and left me so young; my father and mother; Mr Tanaka, with his perverse view of kindness; Nobu, who could never forgive me; even the Chairman. The soup was filled with all that I'd ever cared for in my life; and while I drank it, this man spoke his words right into my heart.

But now I know that our world is no more permanent than a wave rising on the ocean. Whatever our struggles and triumphs, however we may suffer them, all too soon they bleed into a wash, just like watery ink on paper.

Before anyone begins to read this book, you should know two things. First of all, this is a fictional memoir based on multiple interviews that the author, Arthur Golden, had with real Geisha. Secondly, following the publication of this memoir, Arthur Golden faced a lawsuit from one of the Geisha that he interviewed for breaching the confidentiality agreement held between them. At the time of publication, her name was included in the list of contributors to the book, which resulted in her reputation as a Geisha being severely damaged. She even received death threats as a result of this breach in confidentiality. Later on, she went on to write her own memoir of her life as a Geisha, titled Geisha in Gion. 

Now that this context has been covered, onto the review! Overall, this is a beautifully written book that sheds light on a less-understood aspect of Japanese culture - the Geisha. The story is told from a first-person perspective of Sayuri (birth name, Chiyo), who is sold by her father to an Okiya (a Geisha House in Japan) in Gion, Kyoto. The pace is not too slow nor too drab - the story flows beautifully and holds your fascination well. The descriptions and explanations are detailed, and overall the book is a wonderful tapestry of intricate, rich, interesting story-telling. It's just a shame that the context behind the writing of this book is poor ethically, which does spoil it a bit for me. Nevertheless, reading this book has only made me want to read Geisha of Gion even more, and I'm looking forward to seeing the similarities and differences between these two books. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Bullying, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, and Slavery

Minor: War

kshertz's review against another edition

emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Enough time has passed that I forgot the movie. It is super interesting that a dude wrote this book. At times it is super obvious. Especially with talking about losing virginity and women’s bodies. But I was still intrigued and really enjoyed reading the book. I couldn’t put it down. Now I have to go watch the movie again.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual harassment, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Medical content, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Blood, Abortion, Infidelity, Violence, and Sexual violence

tomnoor's review against another edition

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Rape

Moderate: Death of parent, Trafficking, Adult/minor relationship, and Death

Minor: Abortion, Sexual content, and Terminal illness

slushhhhy's review

emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

Really interesting to read about this time in history, which I don't know much about. Even though nothing 'exciting' happens, it was written well and I found it easy to read. Didn't really know what to expect. I enjoyed most of the book apart from the ending chapters, although not sure what would've made for a better ending...

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Sexual content

liv_txt's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, and Trafficking

Minor: Abortion and Death of parent

hanniquinn's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Cancer, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Confinement, War, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Stalking

Minor: Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Blood, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Vomit

memoirsofabooklover's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, War, and Sexual content

junothan's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Trafficking, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, and Grief

Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Misogyny, Sexual content, Abandonment, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and War

Minor: Pregnancy, Blood, and Abortion

thirdtimesacharm's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, War, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Death of parent, Abortion, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

emkat1997's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

 I'm very unsure of how to rate this book. The writing itself was great, but the subject matter was difficult for me to listen to/read when I know that the author is a white man. A white man who has degrees and has worked in Japan, but still. If I didn't know who the author was, my rating would most likely be higher but I'm hesitate because it's just creepy to read about a young girl's "virginity" being sold to the highest bidder. After doing some research on how the book was written, the author was also sued by the geisha that he interviewed because he promised to keep her identity anonymous, but listed her in his sources anyways and she was receiving death threats from past clients. I think I'll be picking up her book soon so I can know her side of things. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Rape

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Abortion, Infidelity, and Death of parent