A review by erickabdz
Geisha: A Life by Mineko Iwasaki

3.0

I had given the Gion Kobu everything I had and it was no longer giving me what I needed. I had no regrets.

I'm not going to lie: I started this book after learning that [b:Memoirs of a Geisha|930|Memoirs of a Geisha|Arthur Golden|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388367666i/930._SY75_.jpg|1558965] was based on Mineko Iwasaki's life and that she had not been happy with was written about her; therefore I started this book looking for a real, accurate depiction of a geisha (or geiko, what I learnt later). Indeed, that was what I found: a proper and detailed retail of Mineko Iwasaki's life in her way to becoming a geiko and her years working as one. It was historically and culturally delightful but, otherwise, a monotonous read and I had to push myself to keep reading. But it leaves me with two important messages: the first one about the importance of learning about the culture, respectfully but still critically, and the second one about how important it is to learn about as many perspectives as I can about different topics. Everybody has their story to tell.

Overall, a great lecture for anybody that is interested in geikos and their world!