Book Review: Foursome by Jane Fallon

I’ve decided to give Jane another try, and this time, I was not as disappointed as I was with the last book.

It is, though, of the usual story of friendship, middle crisis, and adultery. Honestly I am going to be so happy if Jane finally writes something out of these- but I guess some writers are just made that way. I liked the appeal with this book. Foursome is a book about four friends from college and how things have changed in time. It centers on Rebecca, who is fully contented with her life until it begins to fall apart starting with the break up of her two best friends Alex and Isabel.

Rebecca is a stagnant character. She’s not very noticeable at all, and the life of the book is ironically set on the other characters who revolve around her. I love the twists in the book even when they are a bit expected just because of how the characters carry out the actions. I think it also brings out the truth in most families and lives today, and that it justifies that sometimes, life is boring as well because that’s just how it is.

I do hope Jane writes something from a third person point of view, I think it was always her strength. I’d like to see more depth from the other characters who run the course of the story.

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Book Review: The Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

The Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is one of the highly recommended books to read. I was never really interested in historical fiction, because it makes me feel like I am reading for school work. Also, I thought this was based on true events and not fiction, and I am not the type to read biographies of such (except maybe the Diary of Anne Frank).

This book was written in a way that the fictional main character, Sayuri, a Geisha from Gion who migrated to New York, recounts her life to a Dutch writer who has become her friend over the years so he can write a book about her. It starts with a translator’s note from Jakob Haarhuis, a professor of Japanese History like the real author Arthur Golden. He briefly explains their tape recording sessions and of how Sayuri narrates her life. This genius move actually conditioned my brain to think that this was solely based on true events and not made up.

Sayuri was born as Chiyo to a poor family in Yoroido and was sold off to an okiya, a Geisha house when she was young, and her sister as a prostitute. Her mother was dying and her father was too old to care for them. Chiyo tries to run away but was caught, and therefore sentenced to being a house maid. However, circumstances gave way for her to train to become an apprentice under a successful Geisha named Mameha. The book reflects on her life during the 1930s and 1940s.

I was fascinated about the art of the Geisha from Golden’s point of view, as I felt like I was listening to Sayuri herself. I have to admit that some scenes would have made more impact if they were written directly, as Golden wrote poetically in the narrative. I think that was the whole point, though, since it is being told from a Geisha’s point of view, and in Japanese traditional culture women are not often direct. This has also made me realize that there is more to Geisha art than just entertainment, they have ceremonies for events that would have been otherwise not openly talked about in our society like the Mizuage, where wealthy man bid for the virginity of a Maiko (apprentice Geisha), or the taking of a Danna, where basically the Geisha is tied to a certain man who keeps her as his mistress.

Let’s get real here folks, you’d be looked down if this was something you practice, although it is apparent in our society. People lose their virginity like it is nothing, and there are many involved in a polygamous relationship. It’s not as if it isn’t done, we just have a different outlook on it. The Geisha, though, regards this as an art and when you read it from the book, it indeed sounds like art.

I personally did not connect with Sayuri. I think she was a flat character and grew boring over time. Chiyo is a different story, she is a little girl who views the world with open eyes. I think this has to do on how the Geisha life has affected her and molded her into one who cares about social standings and appearances. I also find the other characters, especially the men, just interested in taking her for their own but I guess that is just how their work is. In all fairness, a Geisha’s success depends on her clients and of how influential they are. Now that I think of it, I know Sayuri really loved the Chairman all her life but it doesn’t change the fact that she was still a kept mistress to him, while his wife took care of everything else.

I try to be neutral in this but I think my words are coming out wrong when I talk about the Geisha life, but I swear it doesn’t sound like prostitution when you read it from the book. It is rather best if you read it and share your thoughts to me.

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