Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

Memoirs of a Geisha, written by Arthur Golden is a novel about Chiyo Sakamoto who tells the story of her life as geisha. She is taken from her home as a nine year old who is then sold into slavery at the okiya. She experiences the arts of being a geisha including dance and music, wearing a kimono, elaborating makeup and hair styling. The ideas explored in this novel describe the hardships of becoming a well known geisha. I’ve learnt about the cultural traditions of Japan such as their tea ceremonies, teahouses and their superstitions/ traditions  while reading this novel. Their tea ceremonies were formal gatherings that included green tea and a light meal. Their teahouses were where the geisha entertained men. Their superstitions/traditions included not washing their hair everyday as it was time consuming to style their hair again and to never share hair ornaments with other geisha. Although there are a few Japanese words within the book that require you to search up their definitions, it is easy to catch on with their Japanese vocabulary. Overall I would rate this novel 7.5/10 for its creativity of expressing the hardships of a Japanese girl through memoirs.