Reviews for Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon

The average rating for Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-08-21 00:00:00 Remigiusz Bojdys This 10th century Japan private diary of a lady-in-the-court is one of the most extraordinary pieces of non-fiction I've ever read - through sweeping, exhaustive lists, Shōnagon, a gossip and a prankster, reveals both the universality of human life and the paticularities of her cloistered life in Japanese court. A few of my favorite excerpts: Hateful Things - One is in a hurry to leave, but one's visitor keeps chattering away. If it is someone of no importance, one can get rid of him by saying, "You must tell me all about it next time"; but, should it be the sort of visitor whose presence commands one's best behavior, the situation is hateful indeed. - A man who has nothing in particular to recommend him discusses all sorts of subjects at random as though he knew everything. - I hate the sight of men in their cups who shout, poke their fingers in their mouths, stroke their beards, and pass on the wine to their neighbors with cries of "Have some more! Drink up!" They tremble, shake their heads, twist their faces, and gesticulate like children who are singing, "We're off to see the governor!" I have seen really well-bred people behave like this and I find it most distasteful. - One is just about to be told some interesting piece of news when a baby starts crying. - A flight of crows circle over with loud caws. - One's attachment to a man depends largely on the elegance of his leave-taking. When he jumps out of bed, scurries about the room, tightly fastens his trouser-sash, rolls up the sleeves of his Court cloak, over-robe, or hunting costume, stuffs his belongings into the breast of his robe and then briskly secures the outer sash -- one really begins to hate him. Things that make your heart beat fast - A sparrow with nestlings. - Going past a place where tiny children are playing. - Lighting some fine incense and then lying down alone to sleep. - Looking into a Chinese mirror that's a little clouded. - A fine gentleman pulls up in his carriage and sends in some request. - To wash your hair, apply your makeup and put on clothes that are well-scented with incense. - Even if you're somewhere where no one special will see you, you still feel a heady sense of pleasure inside. - On a night when you're waiting for someone to come, there's a sudden gust of rain and something rattles in the wind, making your heart suddenly beat faster.

Review # 2 was written on 2010-10-10 00:00:00 Scott Malone "Elegant Things A white coat worn over a violet waistcoat. Duck eggs. Shaved ice mixed with liana syrup and put in a new silver bowl. A rosary of rock crystal. Snow on wisteria or plum blossoms. A pretty child eating strawberries." Sei Shonagon was a lady-in-waiting to the Empress of Japan during the Heian period. At one point, she was given some extra paper that had been lying around and decided to make a pillow book - a book kept by her bed, where she jotted down stories, memories, lists, and whatever else came into her head. I loved this little book a lot more than I expected to. For the history buffs, it's an incredibly detailed picture of court life in imperial Japan. For the artistically inclined, Shonagon's images and descriptions are beautiful and stirring ("When crossing a river in bright moonlight, I love to see the water scatter in showers of crystal under the oxen's feet."). For the gossip-inclined, there's tons of court gossip that Shonagon dishes out for us, and she also gives her reader lots of interesting anecdotes about the men she's slept with (she has lots of rules for how gentlemen should and should not behave when visiting a lover at night). The best part, for me, was the whole tone of the book - if I were to follow Shonagon's example and make a list of "Things That Give a Comfortable Feeling", I would put this book at the top. Whenever I was stressing out about tests or papers or work, it was amazingly soothing to pick up this book and read nice anecdotes about rich Japanese women visiting temples, reciting poetry, writing lists, and generally being very clever and elegant all the time. Shonagon, it must be admitted, is not perfect. She hates lower-class people, especially if dress badly or wear their hair wrong. She also writes at one point, "Men have really strange emotions and behave in the most bizarre ways. Sometimes a man will leave a very pretty woman to marry an ugly one. ...I do not understand how a man can possibly love a girl whom other people, even her own sex, find ugly." But then she writes little almost-stories like this: "An attractive woman, whose hair tumbles loosely over her forehead, has received a letter in the dark. Evidently she is too impatient to wait for a lamp; instead she takes some fire-tongs, and, lifting a piece of burning charcoal from the brazier, laboriously reads by its pale light. It is a charming scene." She tells stories about the Empress, the other courtiers, and makes sure we know her opinions on everything. She lists mountains, lakes, forests, and temples. She gives her opinions on fashions and what colors look good together. Some other sample list titles are: "Things That Are Hard to Say", "Features That I Particularly Like", "Things Worth Seeing", "People Who Look Pleased With Themselves", "Things That Are Near Though Distant", "People Who Seem to Suffer", "Things That Make One Nervous", "Things That Seem Better at Night Than in the Daytime", and "Things That Make One Sorry." A lovely, charming book. Should be read somewhere near a garden, while drinking tea and listening to nice music. "I wrote all these notes at home, when I had a good deal of time to myself and thought no one would notice what I was doing. Everything that I have seen and felt is included. Since much of it might appear malicious and even harmful to other people, I was careful to keep my book hidden. But now it has become public, which is the last thing I expected. ...I set about filling the notebooks with odd facts, stories from the past, and all sorts of other things, often including the most trivial material. On the whole I concentrated on things and people that I found charming and splendid; my notes are also full of poems and observations on trees and plants, birds and insects. ...Whatever people may think of my book, I still regret that it ever came to light."