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Liked It “I was in a state of utter ambivalence after reading this book. I did not know how to make my judgments on it or whether I should make any judgments at all. I got some dozen pages with notes and phrases written down. Most likely I will never return to those notes and the enjoyment I had in them...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It2 of 2 members found this review helpful “The world's first novel, Lady Murasaki Shikibu writes about the grandeur of a life in the palace of Prince Genji. It's a bit dragging though, but since it's the first novel, you can't expect the book to be perfect. Still, it is worth having in your home library if you want to know more about the...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“Prince Genji gives a view of life of royalty in early Japanese court”
Jane H wrote this review 8 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I'm reading only the first 9 chapters and that's a relief, because it's pretty boring...”
Irina C wrote this review Thursday, November 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Some call this the world's first novel. I wouldn't. For a novel, it is clumsy and awkward as would be any Japanese court tale forced into that category. But I can't think of another 11th century Japanese court tale written by a woman? Check it out just for that, damn it.”
Ria A wrote this review Monday, September 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I had to read this for school and I found it really hard to understand. I believe a lot of that is because of a culture difference, but it is also very had to follow the story. The point of view switches characters in the middle of a paragraph with no warning and there is no emotion, it is difficult to have empathy for the characters. Overall, I would not recommand this book.”
demented_love wrote this review Wednesday, September 16 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Bore, it was my report. Interesting and shocking, but it's too plotless and boring.
Diana wrote this review Thursday, September 10 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
In anycase, it was written by court ladies in japan who needed something to kill boredom.”
“creating poetry for every encounter was facinating - much of the lifestyle was a lesson but the story did not hold my interest. ”
Barbara S wrote this review Monday, September 7 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I was in a state of utter ambivalence after reading this book. I did not know how to make my judgments on it or whether I should make any judgments at all. I got some dozen pages with notes and phrases written down. Most likely I will never return to those notes and the enjoyment I had in them will belong to the past.
Stas Sajin wrote this review Thursday, September 3 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Recently, though, I had a dream about the life of Genji and about the court intrigues he went through. Everything flowed so smoothly in it, and I think I had a glimpse of understanding. After all, in the dream it was me who was Genji. ”
“Valuable and fascinating depiction of some courtly life in long-ago Japan. ”
Lora S wrote this review Sunday, July 26 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The Tale of Genji is a rare glimpse into eleventh century Japan. Murasaki Shikibu does a magnificent job describing the life at the imperial court. The story follows the life of Genji who is the son of the emperor, but his mother is of very low rank so he is unable to become an heir. Even though Genji cannot become an heir to the thrown he is the jewel of the imperial court, being talented in everything that was valued at the time including: poetry, dance, koto playing, and a keen eye for ascetics. Some could say that Genji is the equivalent of the European Renaissance man.
Jessica G wrote this review Sunday, April 12 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The good looks that the people at court thought would lead to Genji having a short life, proved to be wrong and ended up turning Genji into s true ladies man. Most of the story is consumed by Genji's affairs, which can be a bit tiresome and confusing. Genji chose some rather unexpected characters to become his lovers including a little girl that he brings to the palace to shape into the perfect wife. One good thing about all of Genji's affairs is it gives the reader the chance to read many different Waka, which are two lined poems that would be exchanged between lovers.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Japanese history, since it is written by someone who lived during the Heian period. This book is also good for anyone who truly enjoys classics because it is considered one of the WORLD's first novels. However if you don't mind lengthy books, I would recommend reading the unabridged version which has 54 chapters compared to the 12 available in this version. One plus to the abridged version is it is full of woodblock printings inspired by the novel.”
“This is only the first part of Murasaki Shikibu's incredibly long novel (the whole thing is lengthier than Tolstoy's War and Peace). This book isn't that hard to read, I suppose. It's better than a textbook. But I get so darn sick of Murasaki going on and on and on about Genji's radiance. No matter what he does he is beautiful. And she obviously has a huge crush on this character she created and it doesn't seem to bother her that he's a big slut. Sigh.”
Christina F wrote this review Saturday, January 24 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
