The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon
  • Published:
    Oct-1971
  • Formats:
    Print / eBook
  • Main Genre:
    General Fiction
  • Pages:
    416
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In the tenth century, Japan was both physically and culturally isolated from the rest of the world. The Pillow Book  recaptures this lost world with the diary of a young court lady. Sei Shōnagon was a contemporary of Murasaki Shikibu, who wrote the well-known novel  The Tale of Genji. Unlike the latter's fictionalized view of the Heian-era court, Shōnagon's journal provides a lively miscellany of anecdotes, observations, and gossip, intended to be read in juicy bits and pieces.
This unique volume was first rendered into English in 1889. In 1928, Arthur Waley, a seminal figure in the Western studies of Japanese culture, undertook and published this translation. The distinguished scholar devised this abridged version of the text, re-creating in English the stylistic beauty of its prose and the vitality of its narrative. Waley's interpretation offers a fascinating glimpse of the artistic pursuits of the royal court and its constant round of rituals, festivals, and ceremonies.
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EDITIONS
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    • First Edition
    • Oct-1971
    • Penguin
    • Mass Market Paperback
    • ISBN: 0140442367
    • ISBN13: 9780140442366
    •  
    • Oct-1991
    • Columbia University Press
    • Hardcover
    • ISBN: 0231073364
    • ISBN13: 9780231073363
    •  
    • Mar-2024
    • Rare Treasure Editions
    • eBook
    • ISBN: 1774646625
    • ISBN13: 9781774646625
    •  
    • Mar-2024
    • Rare Treasure Editions
    • eBook (Kindle)



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